May 18, 2010

Famous fugitive appeals his prison term

By David Clarkson

The Court of Appeal is considering whether Billy the Locked-up One ought to have some time shaved off the jail term he got for his Canterbury crime spree.

William Alexander Stewart, who styled himself Billy the Hunted One during his months on the run from police in rural Canterbury last year, put his case at a sitting in Christchurch?s No 1 High Court today.

Defence counsel Glenn Henderson argued that 48-year-old Stewart should have got more of a sentence reduction for his apology, his remorse, and his offer to pay $75,000 towards the reparations.

The losses and damage from his offending ? he eventually pleaded guilty to 47 charges ? totalled about $350,000.

The President of the Court of Appeal, Justice William Young, expressed some reservations at the 20min hearing, but it seems Stewart might get some reduction of his non-parole term because of a technical error.

Mr Henderson said Stewart felt he was now marking time in prison when he wanted to get on with his programmes, including a possible residential full-time drug rehabilitation programme at Odyssey House eventually.

?His desire is to have an opportunity to undertake treatment programmes within prison and out of prison as part of his release conditions or parole,? he said.

On February 5, Christchurch District Court Judge Stephen Erber jailed Stewart for seven years four months, and imposed a non-parole term of four years ten months.

The crown accepted that the sentencing judge had erred in counting two cumulative one-year terms as part of the total for the non-parole term, which could only be imposed on prison terms of two years or more. This would mean an adjustment of the term to four years two months instead.

For the crown, Barnaby Hawes said the one-third reduction allowed on the sentence was enough to take into account the remorse and the reparation offer and no further credit was necessary. ?The offer itself has clearly given the victims no comfort whatsoever.?

Justice Young commented that Stewart?s reparation offer ?seems a bit pie in the sky?, but Mr Henderson said Stewart had made money as a property dealer in the past and believed he could make a substantial payment after his release.

?He is capable and articulate and not lacking in skills,? said Mr Henderson. ?The offer was genuinely made.?

However, Justice Young also noted that in spite of Stewart?s remorse and apology, he had not helped the police by naming co-offenders, or by helping with the recovery of the large amount of stolen property.

After hearing the argument, the court reserved its decision and will deliver it in writing later.

After months in custody after his arrest on May 27, 2008, Stewart pleaded guilty to 23 charges of burglary, five of unlawfully taking vehicles, thefts, interfering with vehicles, escaping from custody, dangerous driving, failing to stop for the police, unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of a pipe for smoking methamphetamine, possession of cannabis resin and cannabis leaf, unlawfully being in a yard, breach of bail, and breach of release conditions.

He went on the run when he heard a warrant had been issued for his recall to prison for breaching his parole. He claimed he was running because he was frightened of the police because of an earlier beating.