Prosecutor’s appeal of fraud sentence of Erin Kate Waters dismissed due to delay

A Cairns medical receptionist who pocketed more than $178,000 with 351 fake Medicare claims has escaped being sentenced to prison. Find out why

A woman who was convicted of $178,558 Medicare fraud but walked free from court has escaped being re-sentenced to prison

Erin Kate Waters, 27, pleaded guilty last August in Cairns District Court to obtaining financial advantage by deception, with Judge Dean Morzone, KC, citing her mental health issues as a moderating factor and sentencing her to two years and nine months’ imprisonment but releasing her on $1000 recognisance and two year good behaviour bond.

The Commonwealth Director of Prosecutions succeeded on its appeal to the Court of Appeal that the sentence was manifestly inadequate and too much weight was given to a psychologist’s report suggesting Waters had borderline personality disorder (BPD) – but the appeal was dismissed because the nine month delay made it unjust to resentence to prison time.

Erin Kate Waters was sentenced for Medicare fraud last August with the Commonwealth Director of Prosecutions appealing the leniency of her sentence. Picture: Nuno Avendano

Justice Jim Henry said Waters was sentenced on August 17, the appeal was filed on September 13 but not heard until May 15, 2023 and Waters was not to blame for the long delay.

He said there was a “lamentable delay in provision of the court file between registries” which didn’t happen until the prosecutor pushed for it four months after the appeal was filed.

Justice Henry said for offending of this scale, a sentence on a guilty plea, with no exceptional circumstances, would ordinarily be at least three years imprisonment with some proportion to be served in actual custody.

Justice Henry noted Waters’ stepfather had paid back the money, which was a mitigating factor, and that Waters was now working as a dental nurse.

He said “it was calculated, prolonged, repetitive offending” and too much weight had been given to a report by psychologist Chris Richardson.

Dr Richardson said Waters felt unsupported by her family and left work as a medical receptionist because her boss was a bully, when in fact she was sacked from Cairns Children’s Clinic when the fraud came to light.

Waters collected $178,558 fraudulently but her stepfather used his superannuation to repay the money, the Cairns District Court heard last August.

Dr Richardson said Waters was left fearing for her life “with no one to protect her” following a relationship with alleged domestic violence.

The report said Waters believed she had PTSD but this had not been diagnosed.

Her GP had diagnosed anxiety and depression.

Waters reported self-harm when she felt others were not paying attention to her.

“Nowhere in Dr Richardson’s report does there appear any identification or explanation of a mitigating causal connection between the respondent’s psychological state and her persistence in continuing her offending for such a prolonged period on such a grand scale,” Justice Henry stated.

“It did not explain, let alone mitigate, the prolonged nature of the offending or the sheer scale of the amount of money taken,” Justice Henry said.

“It is apparent the sentence imposed was manifestly inadequate, even allowing for this case’s mitigating features.

But he said even when there was error, the Supreme Court had a residual discretion not to return a person granted liberty to custody.

Justice James Henry made the ruling with Supreme Court chief justice Helen Bowskill and Justice Philip Morrison agreeing with it.

Originally published as Prosecutor’s appeal of fraud sentence of Erin Kate Waters dismissed due to delay