SENTENCING STATEMENTS

 

A judge may decide to publish a statement after passing sentence on an offender in cases where there is particular public interest; where a case has legal significance; or where providing the reasons for the decision might assist public understanding.

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When deciding a sentence, a judge must deal with the offence that the offender has been convicted of, taking into account the unique circumstances of each particular case. The judge will carefully consider the facts that are presented to the Court by both the prosecution and by the defence.

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HMA v Slawomir Stiller

 

Aug 6, 2024

At Inverness Sheriff Court, Sheriff Sara Matheson sentenced Slawomir Stiller to 28 months' imprisonment after he pled guilty to drink driving, dangerous driving, assault, and threatening and abusive behaviour. The offender was also disqualified from driving for 9 years and 2 months.


On sentencing, Sheriff Matheson said: 

"Slawomir Stiller you appear before me for sentence in respect of one of the worst courses of driving coupled with abusive conduct that I can recall dealing with.

In sentencing you, I take account of the fact that you have no record of previous convictions and of everything that has been said on your behalf as to the background circumstances.  However nothing can take away from the following factors:

  • You were driving a light goods vehicle at more than six times the alcohol limit
  • You were driving on the A9: a busy road well known as the scene of many fatalities
  • You were driving for a considerable distance the wrong way on the dual carriageway of the A9, requiring many vehicles to take evasive action; all when it must have been obvious to you from the frantic efforts of other drivers to alert you, that you were driving in the wrong direction
  • You carried out extremely dangerous manoeuvres at several points, including mounting the grass verge, mounting the central reservation, blocking the road with your van and tailgating the vehicle in front
  • All of this was done in pursuit of a lone female driver, who you deliberately collided with, before trying to force your way into her stationery vehicle in actions which, unsurprisingly, caused her extreme distress
  • The level of risk at which you placed numerous members of the public is hard to overstate; the fact that you did not kill or seriously injure multiple others was a matter of pure luck.

In these circumstances there is no reasonable alternative to a substantial custodial sentence - in order to punish you and to protect the public by deterring other members of the public from similar conduct and to mark society's disapproval of such conduct.

In respect of charges one and two, Parliament has set maximum sentences which I feel are inappropriately low in the exceptional circumstances of your case, but I am constrained by them.

You will be sentenced as follows:

Charge one, a charge of drink driving - 4 months discounted from 6 months due to the timing of your plea - the maximum sentence available to me;

Charge two, a charge of dangerous driving - 16 months discounted from 24 months due to the timing of your plea - the maximum sentence available to me;

Charge three, an assault - 28 months discounted from 42 months due to the timing of your plea;

Charge four, threatening and abusive behaviour - 28 months discounted from 42 months due to the timing of your plea.

All sentences are backdated to 9 May 2024 when you were first remanded in custody and will run concurrently with each other.

In addition, you will be disqualified from driving for a period of 9 years and 2 months."