STATE OF TASMANIA v LEONARD RILEY BRETT J
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE 16 APRIL 2026
Mr Riley, you have pleaded guilty to two separate crimes. The first is an assault committed by you on your partner on 21 November 2024. The second is an act of dangerous driving committed on 25 November 2024. You have also pleaded guilty to summary offences related to both crimes, namely evade police with aggravated circumstances and driving while disqualified committed on each occasion.
The assault was a brutal act of family violence. You and your partner had argued and in the early evening, you took her car and drove away from your home. A short time later, you saw your partner walking in the street with her friend. You drove up beside her and another argument took place. You told her to get into the car, and when she refused to do so, you got out, grabbed her and pulled her towards the car. You then punched her multiple times to the body. The punches caused serious injury, in particular a fractured rib and a pneumothorax. Not surprisingly, she was in significant pain and having difficulty breathing. However, she kept walking. You got back in the car and drove beside her. You then grabbed her by the hair and struck her head against the side of the car a number of times. Police arrived shortly after as a result of having been called by concerned members of the public. They found the complainant on her hands and knees and you in the driver’s seat of the vehicle. When you saw the police, you drove away. They started to pursue you but terminated the pursuit in order to assist your injured partner. Despite being clearly injured, she claimed that nothing had happened. This was obviously a misguided attempt to protect you from prosecution. You were disqualified from driving at the time.
The dangerous driving occurred four days later. About 2:07pm, you were seen by a police officer who was driving an unmarked vehicle and was aware that you were wanted by police. The officer commenced to follow you and when you increased your speed, she activated emergency lights and sirens in an attempt to intercept you. You failed to stop. Due to the nature of your driving, the officer discontinued the pursuit, but you continued to drive dangerously, obviously in an effort to make good your escape. The driving took place over a considerable distance on busy city and suburban streets. Your manner of driving was extremely dangerous. Some of the dangerous features are as follows. At one point, you entered an intersection without giving way. You were driving at 80 km/h in a 50 km/h zone. Another vehicle was forced to stop to avoid collision. At another busy intersection, you attempted to turn right by driving to the right of a line of stationary vehicles. You then drove on the incorrect side of the road and then turned into another busy road accelerating quickly. It is estimated that your speed at this point was 90 km/h in a 60 km/h zone. While travelling at this speed, you overtook other vehicles by crossing a solid white line on the crest of the hill. I infer that when you did so, you had no visibility of any approaching traffic.
Shortly after this, police set up an interception point intending to use spikes in an effort to stop you. You avoided the spikes by braking heavily and then reversing quickly away from police. You continued to drive away, crossing onto the incorrect side of the road and eventually driving down Esk Street, Lindsay Street and Tamar Street. You drove over the Tamar Street bridge still on the incorrect side of the road. You then drove through a red light at the intersection of Tamar and Cimetière Streets and swerved between other vehicles along Tamar Street. A number of vehicles were required to take evasive action to avoid collision. You drove through a red light at the intersection of Tamar and Brisbane Streets, again causing other vehicles to take evasive action. Police eventually disengaged from the pursuit because of the manner of your driving and you were not apprehended at that time. However, you were apprehended on 30 November 2024 and have been remanded in custody since then.
Both crimes are extremely serious. The assault was a serious example of family violence. It was brutal and cruel. You used violence to attempt control of the complainant and to force her to comply with your instructions. You are not to be sentenced on the basis that you intended or subjectively foresaw the causation of serious injury to her, but this was the actual result of your violence. The injuries reflect the brutality of the violence perpetrated by you. You made no attempt to assist her despite the fact that she was seriously injured and when police arrived, you drove away. Clearly, your only concern was for yourself. Although you now claim to be remorseful, you did not surrender yourself to police but remained at large and, in fact, committed the dangerous driving in a desperate attempt to escape apprehension. Family violence generally, but particularly of this level of seriousness, is a matter of justifiable concern in the community and will not be tolerated by the courts. It deserves severe punishment. The sentence must also serve as an example to others who would act in such a way.
The same considerations apply to the driving offences. It is obvious that your motivation to drive in this manner was to escape apprehension, which must have arisen from your knowledge of the serious crime you had committed four days earlier. The driving was sustained over a considerable period and distance and importantly occurred on busy suburban and city streets. You showed complete disregard for the safety of other road users. You drove through red lights, travelled at excessive speed, and crossed a number of times onto the incorrect side of the road despite the presence of other traffic and in dangerous situations. Numerous vehicles had to take evasive action to avoid collision. The consequences of your driving could easily have been catastrophic. The desperation demonstrated by the manner of driving compounded its danger because you were clearly not willing or able to take proper precautions to ensure the safety of others
You are 34 years of age. You have a lengthy criminal history which commences with serious offences committed when you were 14. Thereafter, you continued to commit numerous offences on a sustained and regular basis throughout the balance of your youth and into your adulthood. Your criminal history includes a number of offences of violence and offences related to the driving of motor vehicles. The matters of violence consist of some assaults, including assaulting police and a correctional officer, and an aggravated armed robbery committed as a youth. However, you do not appear to have any prior convictions for family violence. You have also been previously convicted of and sentenced for dangerous driving, reckless driving, evading police on 10 prior occasions and driving whilst disqualified on nine prior occasions. You have been sentenced to both suspended and actual terms of imprisonment for such offences. When the sentences have been suspended, you have invariably breached the terms of suspension by further offending. On 9 August 2024, about three and half months before committing these crimes, you were sentenced to imprisonment backdated to 2023 for numerous offences which included three counts of evading police with aggravated circumstances. A lengthy disqualification was imposed at that time. You were subject to that disqualification when you committed the crimes for which you are now to be sentenced by me. You have since committing these offences been sentenced to imprisonment again for numerous offences including breaching an interim family violence order on many occasions and further counts of evading police with aggravated circumstances and driving while disqualified. All of these offences were committed around the time that you committed the offences with which I am dealing. The aggregate cumulative sentence imposed for these offences was 10 months imprisonment, four months of which was suspended for a period of 12 months. It is appropriate to take these offences into account for the purposes of totality, although they do involve repeated offending of a similar nature committed on different occasions to that relevant to the crimes in this case. However, I must ensure that the overall sentence which I impose is proportionate to the combined criminal conduct and not unduly crushing having regard to your antecedents and prospects.
Your counsel has provided me with information about your background. You are an aboriginal man who comes from a large family. You had a difficult childhood during which you and the family unit generally were exposed to extreme violence perpetrated by your father. He has now passed away. You were also exposed to drug use at an early age. You started using cannabis when you were 11 and amphetamines at age 13. You were given these by your father. You also started to drink alcohol when you were very young. As already indicated, you first came into contact with the criminal justice system at the age of 14, and then spent time in Ashley on a number of occasions. You have recently settled a civil claim against the government in respect of abuse perpetrated against you during your time in that institution. Your counsel claims that you have now developed some insight into the need to rehabilitate yourself. I hope that is so because unless you do, you will continue to lead an unhappy and institutionalised life. I am told that you have undertaken programs and courses while in custody. I accept what I have been told. Upon your release, you will live with your mother who has recently returned from her work with remote communities as a nurse and is living on Cape Barron Island. You have a good relationship with her and it is likely that this will assist you to pursue a path of rehabilitation.
Having said this, your rehabilitation is very much in your hands. You have been given ample opportunity in the past to demonstrate a true commitment to rehabilitation but have squandered those opportunities. In any event, rehabilitation is only one sentencing consideration. In this case, the predominant sentencing considerations in respect of both sets of offending are denunciation and general deterrence. There is also a need for specific deterrence. In my opinion, the only appropriate sentence is a significant term of imprisonment. I will take into account the principles of totality when assessing the sentence and also have regard to the mitigating effect of your pleas of guilty. I note that both pleas were entered at a relatively early time. In particular, the plea in respect of the assault was entered in the Magistrates Court. I will permit the possibility of parole to give the Parole Board the opportunity to respond to any real demonstration of commitment to rehabilitation shown by you while you are in custody.
I am also required to determine whether you should be declared a serious family violence perpetrator. With the conviction for the assault, taken with your conviction on the numerous breaches of an interim family violence order on 23 July 2025, the preconditions for such an order set out in s 29A(2)(b)(ii) of the Family Violence Act have been satisfied. In order to make the declaration, I must be of the opinion that the declaration is warranted. In this case, I am of that opinion. In reaching this conclusion, I have had regard to the nature of the offending. The assault involved a sustained and brutal attack on your partner which was forceful enough to cause serious injury. I also take into account the nature and number of the breaches of the family violence order. Having regard to your antecedents and character, I consider that there is a high risk that you will commit further family violence offences. I come to this conclusion in view of your general disregard for the law demonstrated by your criminal history, although I do have regard to the fact that you do not have any prior convictions related to family violence. However, on balance I consider the risk to be at the level indicated. Accordingly, I am of the opinion that the declaration is warranted.
The orders I make are as follows:
- You are convicted of the crimes and the offences to which you have pleaded guilty;
- For the crime of assault, you are sentenced to imprisonment for a term of two years, which will be backdated to 29 July 2025. You are not eligible for parole until you have served 15 months of that sentence.
- Pursuant to s 13A of the Family Violence Act, I direct that that crime be recorded on your criminal record as a family violence offence. Further pursuant to s 29A of that Act, I declare you to be a serial family violence perpetrator. The declaration is to remain in force for a period of five years from today. I direct that the declaration be recorded on your criminal record.
- For the offence of evade police with aggravated circumstances committed on 21 November 2024, that is count one on complaint 36560/24, you are sentenced to imprisonment for a term of three months which will be cumulative on the sentence imposed for the assault. You are not eligible for parole until you have served two months of that sentence.
- For this offence, you are disqualified from driving for a period of two years. That disqualification will commence upon your actual release from prison.
- For the offence of driving while disqualified committed on 21 November 2024 that is count two on complaint 36560/24, you are sentenced to imprisonment for a term of two months which will be served cumulatively on the sentence imposed on count one on the complaint. You are not eligible for parole until you have served one month of that sentence. Further, you are disqualified from driving for a period of six months which will be served concurrently with the disqualification imposed for count one on complaint 36560/24.
- For the crime of dangerous driving contained in indictment number 263/2025, you are sentenced to imprisonment for a term of 18 months, which will be served cumulatively on the sentence imposed for the disqualified driving on 21 November 2024. You are not eligible for parole until you have served 11 months of that sentence. You are disqualified from driving for a period of two years, which will be served cumulatively on the disqualification imposed for count one on complaint 36560/24.
- For the offence of evade police with aggravated circumstances committed on 25 November 2024 and contained in count one on complaint 36564/24, you are sentenced to three months imprisonment which will be served cumulatively on the 18 month sentence imposed for the dangerous driving. You are not eligible for parole until you have served two months of that sentence. You are also disqualified from driving for a period of two years which will be served concurrently with the two-year disqualification imposed for the dangerous driving crime.
- For the offence of driving while disqualified committed on 25 November 2024 and contained in count two on complaint 36564/24, you are sentenced to two months imprisonment which will be served cumulatively on the sentence imposed for count one on that complaint. You are not eligible for parole until you have served one month of that sentence. You are disqualified from driving for a period of six months which will be served concurrently with the disqualification imposed for the dangerous driving.
- For the purposes of s 92A(3) of the Sentencing Act, I specify that:
- the total term of imprisonment which you are liable to serve in respect of all of the above sentences is four years and four months commencing on 29 July 2025
- The total period that you must serve before you become eligible for parole is the aggregate of the non-parole periods relating to the said sentences, which is a total period of 32 months.
I do intend to make a violence family order. I am required to do so in view of the declaration. I am satisfied of the matters contained in s 16(1) and it will be obvious in my reasons that I am satisfied of those matters. I make an order in the same terms of the interim family violence order which was dated 1 December 2024. The terms are that you are not to stork, *name suppressed*, not directly or indirectly threaten abuse or assault her, not knowingly enter premises where *name suppressed* is living, including by any form electronic or any other communication except during the appearance in court proceedings involving the parties or discussions in the court precincts for the purposes of those proceedings are consented to by both parties, not to enter any premises where *name suppressed* is presently living or any other place where she may be staying, not to go within the boundary of 100 metres of the boundary of such premises.
You are not to apply for any licence or permit under the Firearms Act.