‘Outrageous’ burglar on jail term knife-edge

A 59-year-old man who had 36 prior convictions for burglary has avoided jail “by the narrowest of margins”, as the magistrate acknowledged his ability to secure a home was a rare win for those who were caught in the criminal cycle.

Michael Jamie Quinn appeared in Geraldton Magistrate’s Court last week on a single charge of burglary on a place not ordinarily used for human habitation.

At 8am on Friday, March 25, Quinn broke into the Geraldton Water Corporation building, climbing on to the grounds through a missing panel in the fence. Upon entering the building through a window, he tripped the security alarm, causing him to make a quick search of the building for cash.

He found a safe, in which he assumed all the cash would be kept and, realising he would be unable to access it, he left the premises without taking anything.

Police later found his fingerprints at the scene and, after his arrest, he made full admissions to police.

Police prosecutor Carey Owen said imprisonment would be an appropriate sentence.

Magistrate Donna Webb agreed, highlighting Quinn’s terrible record and said the only mitigating factor was that he had entered a guilty plea at the earliest available opportunity.

“It’s just an absolute outrage,” she said.

“The court has thrown everything at him ... gone to great effort to put Quinn on orders or place him in programs to help him rehabilitate.”

She said it was hard to have sympathy when the courts had tried so hard to help him, and the only thing slowing his offending down was his old age and poor health.

Defence counsel Kate Fry said Quinn was worried if he went to prison he would lose his Homeswest house, making him homeless when he got out.

Ms Webb acknowledged this could help keep him out of trouble, and put him on a pre-sentence order for 12 months, with an indicated jail term of 12 months if he failed.

“It’s now a matter for you to decide how many of your remaining years you want to spend in the community, and not in jail,” she said.