‘Want to have a go?’ Neighbour bashed with pole in tree dispute

An ongoing neighbourhood dispute over noise and trees has ended in court after a man smashed his neighbour over the head with a metal pole, splitting open his forehead.

A man pleaded guilty to assaulting his neighbour.

An ongoing dispute over noise and trees in a Southeast Queensland suburb has ended in court after a man smashed his neighbour over the head with a metal pole, splitting open his forehead.

Jacob Kilmartin, 48, narrowly avoided a jail sentence for the “appalling” attack on his 58-year-old neighbour in the coastal suburb of Shorncliffe in April this year.

He pleaded guilty in the Brisbane District Court on Wednesday to one charge of assault occasioning bodily harm while armed.

Crown Prosecutor Emily McGregor said there had been an ongoing dispute between the two men that erupted in a violent exchange on April 10 when Kilmartin was confronted by his neighbour about making loud noises.

“They exchanged words from their respective balconies,” she said.

“The defendant at one point said ‘did you want to have a go’.

“The complainant said ‘well come on then, let’s talk have a talk about this’.”

The pair met on the footpath outside their homes but Kilmartin arrived armed with a metal bar.

“The complainant, unarmed, asked the defendant to drop the pole, the defendant declined, he approached him, raised the pole and struck him in the forehead once,” Ms McGregor said.

The court heard the offending was stopped when the complainant wrestled Kilmartin to the ground and calmed him down.

The victim suffered a 2cm laceration to his forehead and spent the night in hospital.

“The defendant was spoken to by police at the scene, he admitted he had hit the complainant,” Ms McGregor said.

“He said he had done so because the complainant had invited him to a fight and said he’d armed himself because the complainant was bigger than him.”

Defence barrister Kerala Drew submitted Kilmartin was not an appropriate vehicle to send a message of deterrence to the wider community because he suffered from medical conditions including schizophrenia and memory loss and required a carer to assist him around the home.

“It seems to have been that he lost his temper, he reacted in an appalling way and he knows that but he is remorseful and I say that your honour can see that through his early plea of guilty,” Ms Drew said.

The barrister said the defendant and complainant still lived next door to one another and Kilmartin had not breached his bail conditions that prevented him from having any contact with his neighbour.

Judge Jennifer Rosengren said in the absence of the submissions about his medical issues, a term of imprisonment would have been imposed.

“It’s very appalling behaviour quite frankly,” she said.

“It’s a bit of a shame you got yourself involved in this really.”

Kilmartin was sentenced to a two year probation order and a conviction was recorded.

“Can I say to you that if you come before this court with an offence of violence again, you will find yourself in much more trouble,” Judge Rosengren said.

“I hear you do keep to yourself, you live a relatively quiet life.

“When you have disagreements with people, if this is the way that you are going to respond, it’s just going to be trouble for you in the future.