‘Semi-human’: Man jailed for attacks on pregnant partner

A BURNETT man was jailed after committing a series of violent attacks on his pregnant partner, including hitting her with a piece of fence paling ‘like a bat’.

A BURNETT man was jailed after committing a series of violent attacks on his pregnant partner, including hitting her with a piece of fence paling, a bottle, and a screwdriver. File Photo.

 

A BURNETT man has been locked up after repeatedly striking his pregnant partner with various objects - including a piece of fence paling - and repeatedly taunting her with cruel insults and pouring drinks over her head, a court heard.

The defendant, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to 13 charges before Murgon Magistrates court via video, including five counts of contravening a domestic violence order, two counts of assault occasioning bodily harm while armed, two counts of possessing dangerous drugs, assault occasioning bodily harm, common assault, obstructing a police officer, and breaching bail.

According to police prosecutor Sergeant Barry Stevens, at 11am on March 3, 2020, police attended a Kingaroy dwelling after reports of a disturbance. The defendant and victim had been arguing when he punched her in the face, and then left the address before police arrived.

Arriving on scene, officers found the victim crying with swelling to her eye and noticed a number of smashed plates on the floor.

"She said she'd smashed the property after the defendant left, as she was upset and angry," Sgt Stevens said. The victim was 26-weeks pregnant at the time of the incident and transported to Kingaroy Hospital as a precaution.

On June 28, police attended the same address in relation to another disturbance, where the defendant confessed to a verbal argument and threatened to self-harm. He was arrested and taken to Murgon Watch House.

Between 1 AM and 2 AM on July 16, 2020, the aggrieved was down a central Burnett street with a friend when she noticed the defendant walking toward her. She attempted to cross the street to get away from him, but he followed her across.

The victim was holding a raspberry cruiser, which the defendant took out of her hand and poured the contents over her head. He then used the empty bottle to strike her over the back of the head, saying "I told you I was going to hit you".

The defendant tried to force the victim to walk toward a particular property, physically pushing her in that direction after she refused. The victim dropped to the ground on the roadway, saying she felt light headed, and the defendant began yelling at her to get up.

While she was on the ground he punched and kicked her in the head, and then kicked her hand, causing it to swell and bruise. He grabbed her by the jumper and pulled her onto her feet, before dragging her to the address.

While at the property, the victim moved her hands to protect her face and the defendant said "I know where all your weak spots are". He then punched her in the side of the ribs.

Sgt Stevens said the defendant then picked up a piece of fence paling 'like a bat' and struck her twice in the back of the legs, causing her to fall to the ground. He flicked a cigarette at her before pulling her off the floor.

After following the defendant to another nearby property, he began calling the victim names, such as "poxy hole", accusing her of sleeping around and then throwing water at her.

The victim picked up a nearby hammer and swung it at the defendant. He approached her, took the hammer and then pulled a screwdriver out of his pocket.

He said "I'm going to stab you in the head", before hitting her in the back on the head with the metal end. The screwdriver slid from her head to her neck, causing a small laceration. He then grabbed her by the hair and began jerking her back and forth.

The defendant also faced two drug offences dating back to June 4, 2020.

At 2.20pm, police executed a search warrant at a Kingaroy property, locating a duffel bag containing clothes and 12 small clip seal bags, each containing about 0.15 grams of meth. Officers also located 0.4 grams of chopped "green leaf material" in the kitchen, and when asked, the defendant said he'd been smoking "Yarndie" before they arrived - a street name for marijuana.

On August 8, police received an alert from a GPS tracking device, which was attached to the defendants ankle, informing them he'd entered a restricted area. He had previously entered into a bail undertaking, which prohibited him from entering this region.

On August 9, the defendant was charged with a serious obstruction of a police officer, after he was intercepted while driving in the Central Burnett region. Wanted by police for the previously mentioned charges, the defendant refused to comply with police and "violently struggled" when they attempted to place him under arrest. During this struggle, one of the arresting officers was kicked in the chest.

Police had to forcibly remove him from his vehicle, and when attempting to place in the back of the police car, he put his feet up at the sides of the door and pushed back.

Magistrate Sinclair said the defendant's behaviour was "semi-human", and said the charges relating to the possession of methamphetamine, while not an excuse, "does go some way to explain how someone could treat another human being like that".

"I will send you to prison, not to punish you - thought that is part of it - but to protect both your partner and other people, who won't be attacked because at least some will understand they can't behave like this, and that doing so will lead to a period of imprisonment," Magistrate Sinclair said.

The defendant received a head sentence of 15 months in prison.

Since he has already spent 71 days behind bars during stage four lockdown conditions, his parole release date was set for January 10, 2021. The remaining 10 months will then be suspended.

Convictions are recorded.

NATIONAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CRISIS SERVICES

1. 1800 RESPECT: 1800 737 732
2. Australian Childhood Foundation: 1800 176 453
3. MensLine Australia: 1300 78 99 78
4. LifeLine: 13 11 14
5. Kids Helpline: 1800 55 1800
6. Relationships Australia: 1300 364 277

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