The Daily Populous Tuesday August 20th, 2024 evening edition
Authored by abc.net.au and submitted by Remarkable_Put_9005

A homeless man who asked for an immediate jail term due to a lack of available housing in Western Australia reoffended hours after he was released into the community.

During sentencing on Monday, David Ambrosius, 48, had asked for two years in jail for starting a fire at the abandoned Batavia Motor Inn in Geraldton last year.

Ambrosius asked to be imprisoned, citing the lack of housing and support services available in the Midwest region.

He told the Geraldton District Court he would reoffend if he was released.

The derelict Batavia Motor Inn hotel was considered an eyesore by locals for several years. (ABC Midwest & Wheatbelt: Chris Lewis)

However, Judge David Maclean said the Sentencing Act defined what he could take into account and that he could only impose an immediate term of imprisonment when the seriousness of the offending required it.

The judge ordered that Ambrosius be immediately released.

A few hours later, the 48-year-old was arrested on charges of trespass and damaging property.

He pleaded guilty in the Geraldton Magistrates Court on Tuesday and was given a suspended $300 fine.

He was also given another suspended fine of $100 for a trespass charge from last year.

The fines will not be enforced unless Ambrosius reoffends during the next seven days.

The District Court had previously heard Ambrosius lit the fire at the Batavia site on a night in July 2023 and went to sleep without placing barriers around it or ensuring he had a way to extinguish it.

Firefighters were called to the site and put out the fire, which was found burning through rubbish, weeds and grass.

Ambrosius had been sleeping in a room at the abandoned motor inn.

Ambrosius had been residing inside a room at the abandoned Batavia Motor Inn. (ABC Midwest and Wheatbelt: Laura Meachim)

The 48-year-old was charged with failing to ensure the fire would not become uncontrolled and he pleaded guilty at an early court appearance.

He was briefly released on bail before being taken back into custody in November for breaching bail conditions.

He represented himself during his District Court sentencing on Monday.

Ambrosius told Judge David Maclean that he had been unable to attain community housing while in custody and requested further time in prison to "resolve" his situation.

"I was hoping for a minimum of two years," Ambrosius said at the time.

He told Judge Maclean he wanted to use services within the prison system to secure housing and gain employment skills.

"If I'm released, I'll be reoffending," he said.

"I'll be in the same circumstances and will need to reoffend.

"If I can have a term of imprisonment I can resolve the issue so I won't reoffend again."

Prosecutors told the court that Ambrosius had been "trying to stay out of trouble".

The Batavia Motor Inn was demolished, leaving the central town site covered in rubble. (ABC Midwest & Wheatbelt: Brianna Melville)

On Monday, Judge Maclean said Ambrosius' offending was only minor.

"It's a small fire when someone's cold and homeless," he said.

Judge Maclean said he took into account a psychological report, which referenced personality disorders that made it difficult for Ambrosius to conform to social norms and a "biological predisposition" to substance abuse disorders.

Judge Maclean said while it was not what Ambrosius wanted to hear, he had already served enough time in prison for the offence.

The former Batavia Motor Inn was almost completely demolished soon after Ambrosius was charged, and only one building remains standing on the site.

Shelter WA chief executive Kath Snell said she was aware of a concerning trend of individuals turning to minor crimes to secure housing and food in prison, underscoring "a failure in the supply of accommodation".

The organisation's chair, Kieran Wong, said national figures found that two in five adults entering prison were homeless in the 30 days prior to incarceration, and prisoners were 100 times more likely to experience homelessness than the general population.

"Jails may be inadvertently serving as housing providers for some of society's most vulnerable individuals, a clear indication of systemic failure," he said.

Effective-Ad-6460 on August 20th, 2024 at 13:52 UTC »

Same problem in the UK

But ... males are the last to be housed ... especially young males.

They can go 15-20 years before a council house becomes available

...

Funny that when politicians have 9 houses and £30,000,000 in the bank

ClockworkDreamz on August 20th, 2024 at 13:05 UTC »

We don’t exactly have a housing Shortage, we have a housing To expensive, and bought up.

Therustedtinman on August 20th, 2024 at 12:25 UTC »

Modern problems require modern solutions?