Eight defendants faced Gladstone Magistrates Court on various charges on Monday and Tuesday
From having illegal weapons to stealing wine and driving unlicensed, a number of people passed through the courts in Gladstone for various offences recently.
Police & Courts
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From a taser boasted about to friends under the watchful eyes of security, to stolen computer desktops, these eight unrelated offenders were sentenced in Gladstone Magistrates Court for a variety of offences in the past week.
Shania Maree Bruce, 24
A mother of three activated her taser on several occasions at a busy Gladstone night spot, Gladstone Magistrates Court heard.
Shania Maree Bruce, 24, pleaded guilty on Tuesday, October 12 to unlawful possession of weapons Category D/H/R.
The court heard that on September 11, around 11.30pm, police were at Mie Place Nightclub when security notified them they could hear a taser-like sound on the smoker’s deck.
While police were attempting to locate who may have been activating a taser, it went off again.
A security guard was near Bruce when she activated the taser and immediately seized it from her.
The taser was black, with a small decorative imitation diamond with a cap on one end.
The security guard handed the taser to police and escorted them to where Bruce was located.
She made full admissions to police about owning the taser and activating it in front of her friends, saying it was for self protection.
Bruce’s lawyer Pierre Lammersdorf said his client had found the taser at a party and never disposed of it like she had originally intended to do.
Acting Magistrate Ron Muirhead convicted and fined Bruce $250. No conviction was recorded.
Sharna Lee Hull, 32
A woman told police she was aware of her traffic infringements, however, chose to do nothing about them, Gladstone Magistrates Court heard.
Sharna Lee Hull. 32, pleaded guilty on Monday, October 11, to unlicensed driving.
The court heard that on September 19, around 9.20am, Calliope Highway Patrol intercepted Hull driving on the Bruce Highway at Raglan due to her being unlicensed.
Police computer checks on Hull’s licence revealed she was SPER suspended as of September 2, 2021.
Hull stated she had received a letter from SPER in relation to being behind in payments.
She also stated she did not contact SPER to have the matter dealt with and was subsequently issued a notice to appear.
Hull was suspended from driving for one month and a conviction was recorded.
Gregory Myles Nichols, 37
A night out with friends turned into a nightmare for 37-year-old Gregory Myles Nichols, Gladstone Magistrates Court heard.
Nichols pleaded guilty on Tuesday, October 12, to two counts of public nuisance, obstructing police in a licensed premises and possession of a knife in a public place or a school.
The court heard police were called to the Reef Hotel around 1am on August 25 in relation to an assault.
Police arrived and saw Nichols speaking with a security guard outside and entered the pub to investigate.
They spoke with a man who indicated he had been involved in a disturbance with Nichols, however, did not want to make an assault complaint at the time.
Police viewed CCTV footage of the incident which depicted Nichols talking to the witness in the smoking area.
Nichols was standing over the man who was gesturing for him to back off, before Nichols grabbed an empty glass from the table and smashed it forcefully over the table, the court heard.
Police saw a security guard speak with Nichols who was offered a bottle of water, but Nichols grabbed the bottle and threw it over his shoulder onto the floor.
Outside, police asked Nichols to supply photographic identification, however, he refused and stated he had none.
The court heard he proceeded to remove something from his wallet and police saw photo identification in the wallet and made a further request for Nichols to produce his licence.
Nichols responded by yelling at police “I don’t have a f---ing licence because of you police c----”.
He was warned about his language, however, continued to yell and clenched his fists, the court heard.
Nichols was warned he would be arrested, then subsequently was for public nuisance.
Police placed him in handcuffs and Nichols reacted by dropping his weight and laying on the floor, once again obstructing police.
The court heard that while in the watch house police removed Nichols’ belt which had a small pouch attached that contained a small flip knife.
Nichols said the knife was for work, despite not wearing workwear, and he was unaware he could not have it.
Nichols further stated he worked for Centrelink and would not wear the clothes he was arrested in while at work.
He was issued a notice to appear in the Gladstone Magistrates Court and released on a bail undertaking.
He was convicted and sentenced to three months imprisonment, wholly suspended for 15 months.
Convictions were recorded and Nichols was banned from Gladstone’s Safe Night Precinct for six months.
Benjamin Leigh Jensen, 37
A man’s hankering for fine wine led him to Gladstone Magistrates Court after he stole not just one, but two bottles.
Benjamin Leigh Jensen, 37, pleaded guilty to unauthorised dealing with shop goods (Maximum $150).
The court heard that on September 3, around 8.40pm, Jensen and a woman entered Star Liquor, West Gladstone.
Jensen was observed by police on CCTV footage walking to the rear of the store with the woman.
A short time later the shop attendant was dealing with another customer when Jensen grabbed two bottles of pinot noir, valued at $18 and $27, and put them under his jumper.
Jensen and the woman walked out of the store one after the other and made no attempt to pay for the wine bottles, the court heard.
On September 24, around 9.30am, police attended Jensen’s house and spoke with him.
Jensen made full admissions to taking the wine and was drunk during the incident and was not thinking straight.
He was issued a notice to appear in the Gladstone Magistrates Court.
Acting Magistrate Ron Muirhead convicted and fined Jensen $275 and recorded a conviction. Restitution of $45 was ordered to be paid to Star Liquor.
Kevin William Johnson, 54
A big night of drinking came back to haunt a Tannum Sands man who was charged with drink driving, Gladstone Magistrates Court heard.
Kevin William Johnson pleaded guilty on Tuesday, October 12, to the offence which occurred on September 6, around 11.10am.
The court heard Johnson submitted to a roadside breath test at a stationery site on Hampton Drive, Tannum Sands.
Johnson’s breath test returned a positive blood alcohol concentration of .055 per cent.
He told police he had seven drinks the night before and stopped drinking around midnight.
Police issued Johnson a notice to appear in Gladstone Magistrates Court.
He was convicted and fined $250 and suspended from driving for one month. No conviction was recorded.
Ayden Ty Bellamy, 18
A Gladstone man’s attempts to turn the lights off on everyone else’s party wound up in him facing court.
Ayden Ty Bellamy, 18, pleaded guilty in Gladstone Magistrates Court on Tuesday, October 12, to wilful damage.
The court heard that on September 19, around 12.10am, police were patrolling Yarroon Street when they observed Bellamy walking along the exterior wall of the Central Lane Hotel.
Bellamy was seen to pull on several external lights attached to the wall of the Central Lane Hotel.
Police then observed Bellamy pull on a light violently, which caused the light to pull away from the wall, the court heard.
After lights at the hotel went out, police stopped Bellamy and spoke to him regarding the incident.
Bellamy said he had made a poor decision and was apologetic for causing the damage.
He could offer no reason as to why he caused the damage, other than he was intoxicated, and he was issued a notice to appear in the Gladstone Magistrates Court.
Acting Magistrate Ron Muirhead convicted and fined Bellamy $400. A conviction was not recorded.
Mark Leslie Gordon, 55
A man located by police with a swath of stolen technology told officers he had found some of it in bins behind hotels, Gladstone Magistrates Court heard.
Mark Leslie Gordon, 55, pleaded guilty last week to unlawful possession of suspected stolen property.
The court heard police executed a search warrant on Gordon’s Oaka Lane address on April 21, around 4.25pm.
During the search police located a number of items and questioned Gordon on them.
The items included a card payment machine, which Gordon said he found it in a rubbish bin behind Oaka Lane two years ago and a lubrication valve, which Gordon said was brought around to his house by a mate.
Finally, a Lenovo computer monitor and an LG computer monitor which Gordon said he was not sure how he came into possession of and possibly that someone had left them at his house or he had swapped them was found, the court heard.
On June 30 police re-attended Gordon’s address and issued him a notice to appear in the Gladstone Magistrates Court.
Gordon was convicted and fined $800 and a conviction was recorded.
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