Robert Dwayne Kennedy sentenced for assault on fellow prisoner
A prisoner in a notorious western Sydney correctional centre has been dealt with for instigating a fight with a fellow inmate in which he pulled a dangerous weapon.
Penrith
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A prisoner at a notorious western Sydney jail has been sentenced for instigating a knife fight against a fellow inmate.
Robert Dwayne Kennedy, 34, faced Penrith District Court via custody from the Wellington Correctional Centre on Wednesday when he was sentenced for assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
The court was told Kennedy had instigated a fight with a fellow inmate while being held on remand at Parklea Correctional Centre in October 2023.
Kennedy had been in a common room at the prison when another prisoner entered and the two began a brief conversation.
The other prisoner then began backing away as Kennedy pursued him, before the two began throwing punches.
The court was told Kennedy then pulled a “sharp object” from the waistband of his shorts and continued to advance towards the other prisoner, who continued backing away.
Kennedy then returned the knife to his waistband and the altercation continued as the men threw punches at each other’s heads.
The court was told the men were left injured in the scuffle, with Kennedy suffering cuts to the back of his neck, chest, side of the head and finger; while the other inmate suffered minor bleeding and superficial cuts, though it was not disclosed where.
The court heard animosity between them triggered the fight and there were no allegations of organised crime.
Judge Thomas Jones said Kennedy had a difficult childhood and a lengthy criminal history in relation to personal violence.
He said Kennedy had spent about a decade of his adult life in custody.
He was sentenced to nine months behind bars, which was backdated to his first bail application in July 2024.
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