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Offender Databases Courtney O'Hara-Phillips

Courtney O'Hara-Phillips

Alias

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Offences

Aggravated assault, assault of another prisoner during a short trip in a prison van, recklessly discharging a firearm, unlawfully possessing a firearm, assorted burglaries, receiving stolen property, unlawfully taking cars, unlawfully interfering with a vehicle, other charges of breaching bail etc etc etc

Victims

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Offender Affiliations

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Gang affiliations

none known

Age

Born 1985

Current Location

unknown

Parole/Release Dates

Sentenced to 4 years 6 months in November 2003
A non-parole period of 2 years 6 months was imposed

Background
THE PRESS, 29th November 2003
Driven by a craving for P, cannabis, and alcohol, a teenager became almost a one-man crime wave in Christchurch. Courtney O'Hara-Phillips' extensive spree was marked yesterday in the Christchurch District Court when Judge David Saunders imposed a 4 year 6 month jail term with a minimum two years six months non- parole period.

O'Hara-Phillips, 18, admitted multiple offences, including several charges each of burglary and unlawfully taking cars, also breaching bail, recklessly discharging a firearm, unlawfully possessing a firearm, aggravated assault, and receiving. Judge Saunders said he had become "almost a one-man crime wave in Christchurch". Most of the offending was committed soon after O'Hara- Phillips came out of jail for a burglary committed this year.

The emotional harm he had done to the victims would obviously take a long time for them to recover from. "It is readily apparent this type of offending causes far more than just financial consequences for the victims," the judge said. Reading from his own victim impact report, one victim told the court of his lasting feelings of violation and insecurity arising from coming home to find his house trashed, and valuable property taken.

He now felt reluctant to leave the house for any long period, and had been forced into arranging extra security. "I thought I was safe in my house and in society, but the burglary has disintegrated that," he said. Prosecutor James Rapley said the offending had been on such a scale that considerable police resources had to be directed at what was effectively a crime spree, which started almost as soon as the accused was released from jail.

Counsel Kristy O'Connor said O'Hara-Phillips was not yet ready to make the necessary changes in his life, but he was still salvageable. He was driven by drug use, especially P, cannabis, and alcohol, and came from a family background of instability. He effectively had no home base since the age of three, and no schooling since aged 10. The offending was not deliberately cruel, but thoughtless, fuelling his teenage desires, she said.

Judge Saunders said clearly O'Hara-Phillips had a corrupt value system, used to justify his need to feed a drug habit, which could be dealt with inside the prison system. "You need intensive work in a controlled situation." The fact that he had been under the influence of alcohol and drugs was not mitigating, and the over-all magnitude of the offending justified a minimum non-parole period, he said.

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Corrections and Additional Information
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