Jason Allen Martin returned to prison over outstanding warrant, faces Toowoomba Magistrates Court for trespass

A Warwick man who was shot earlier this year found himself on the wrong side of the law when he panicked after police arrived to calls of a disturbance at a Toowoomba address and jumped a 2m fence in a failed bid to flee.

Lucky to be alive after he was shot in the stomach while standing on a Warwick street, a man has been returned to jail on a warrant after failing to comply with his parole for a violent home invasion two years ago.

Toowoomba Magistrates Court was told on Monday that Jason Allen Martin was at an address in Kearneys Spring about 6pm on July 9, 2022, when police were called to respond to a disturbance.

When police arrived a number of people fled from the rear of the property, police prosecutor Rohan Brewster-Webb said officers patrolling the location found the 37-year-old injured in the neighbouring property.

The court was told Martin had scaled a 2m fence and had landed heavily on the way back down, fracturing his hand in the process.

In court Martin pleaded guilty to one count of trespass.

Martin’s solicitor Brad Skuse told the court his client was the victim of a shooting earlier this year, when a 26-year-old allegedly gunned Martin down in broad daylight on a busy Warwick street about 9.20am on February 15.

After he was initially driven by family to Warwick Hospital Martin was flown to Princess Alexandra Hospital to undergo surgery on the life-threatening injury where remained in a critical condition in the intensive care unit for several days before recovering to a more stable state.

Mr Skuse said his client was on parole at the time of the shooting, after he had been sentenced in Toowoomba District Court in July 2020 for his part in a violent home invasion that saw a man tasered, beaten and robbed.

Sentenced to three years jail, Mr Skuse said his client had been released on parole in October 2020, and had been doing well in the community, but his shooting saw him lose his job and accommodation.

“He had been doing quite well up until that point in time,” Mr Skuse said.

However, the court was told Martin was subject to a return to prison warrant at the time of the incident, which saw him “panic” when police arrived at the Kearneys Spring address he was lawfully at.

The court was told Martin was the father of twins, who were celebrating their birthday on Tuesday, and he was “hoping to stay out” for the occasion which contributed to his decision to flee.

Noting that Martin’s parole had been cancelled by virtue of the warrant, magistrate Louise Shephard convicted Martin but he was not further punished.

Originally published as Jason Allen Martin returned to prison over outstanding warrant, faces Toowoomba Magistrates Court for trespass