Hey Kkat. Just posted on the other thread Kkat asking how you were and how things went thinking you might not have got back yet but found you skulking away in here. HaHaaaa! Super sleuthy of me I know. 8) Deleted the other one cos it was all a bit speculative anyways without reading this back first, but seems that thread might be more appropriate to this one for the below? Fuck it, I'll move it later if I can be arsed! :lol:
the judge doesn't want to factor in my mental health issues
He has to take it into account when he sentences given a prior psych assessment that says you're scizophrenic, same as he'll have to take into account Probation reports, evidence from addiction unit saying you're addressing your addictions, whatever. He can disagree with Probation / addiction unit recommendations all he likes but he can't argue against you having an expertly, indepently diagnosed mental illness pre-existing the whole trial thing, unless he's gonna rule your vulnerable mental state as an exploitable addict isn't even remotely relevant to the offence. It will be immediate grounds for an appeal against length of sentence if he dismisses a medical diagnosis out of hand I'm sure because it is expressly provided for in the
definitive sentencing guidelines for drug offences as something to be taken into consideration.
See page 11 of that document for definitions of the role you played. It has to be a lesser one by the definitions there. Then what category of offence they talking about? If your brief is saying 5 years looks like it's being dealt with as a Category 2 Class A supply offence. Even with a guilty plea they still need to show that as someone playing a minor role not being directly involved in handling quantities of Class As and moving them elsewhere yourself, not standing to benefit out of the transactions having no major interest in the 'enterprise' or the profits being made a sentence at even the 5 year starting point that assumes you had full knowledge of the scale, with evidence showing why it's being dealt with as Category 2 offence and not 1 or 3 is consistent with justice. Being given a few bags for the use of a bank account and phone don't cut it.
Page 14 same guidelines gives a whole list of acceptable mitigations, your mental condition being specifically set out as something that needs to be taken into consideration. In practice judges will sometimes feel they wanna make an example of someone leaving the Appeals Court to decide if they overstepped the bounds at all but even so his hands are tied to an extent by the guidelines, and I can't see your case is even in the most serious categories, with ample mitigation as a vulnerable addict with mental health issues making very little out of this regardless of scale and money involved. I don't think he
has to give anything like 5 years if he wakes up in a good mood and decides to be a bit more reasonable with the guidelines when you next come up. 5 years is the starting point, but could be 3 years 6 months, and that's assuming it's sentenced as Category 2 supply / concerned in the supply of class As, and couldn't have been dealt with using a less serious category. Your legal team / probation should already be doing this but give as much info as you can so they can gather as many independent reports as are possibly relevant. Do some donkey work yourself pulling in any supporting evidence if anything comes to mind worth considering.
He will also have to give credit for an early guilty plea. At this stage assuming a
proper trial had yet to be set he should give 33% credit against length of sentence, 25% if you put the plea in a bit after things got properly in motion re: trial date. He can give less if he feels like it cos it's discretionary, but again grounds for an appeal if he doesn't give you the full credit. Even with a 5 year sentence as starting point in the guidelines that will actually mean 3 years 4 months, 3 years 8 if you get 25%. Then you'll only do half and might get HDC all chipping away at what you'll actually have to serve assuming a sentence at starting point, all mitigation evidence dismissed as irrelelevant.
Don't give in all to gloom and despair just yet, eh? Still room for optimism, and it ain't all over and done with inevitable you'll get anything like 5 years. Chin up. It ain't over till the fat lady sings.
yeah tis nice to be consistent, and I'm sure it will be okay too!
hang in there love 
