Steven and Michael Barton beat man because they believed he was abusing his wife
Two brothers have been chastised for “taking the law into their own hands” and bashing a man after they claimed they learned something disturbing about him.
Crime and Court
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TWO brothers have been chastised for “taking the law into their own hands” and bashing a man who they believed was abusing his wife.
Steven and Michael Barton were given a two-year jail sentence, immediately suspended, for storming a Coombabah home last year and beating Brendon Maddox until he was unconscious.
Mr Maddox was in hospital for three days with a punctured lung, fractured ribs and bruises to his face.
The brothers pleaded guilty to burglary and assault occasioning bodily harm in the Southport District Court yesterday. They must pay Mr Maddox $5000 each in compensation within the next two weeks.
The court was told hospital security guard Steven Barton became aware a friend was being abused by her partner.
After he heard the pair argue over the phone on February 24 last year, the 35-year-old and his older brother Michael decided to confront Mr Maddox.
Steven Barton pushed his way into Mr Maddox’s bedroom, grabbed him by the throat and punched him four or five times.
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Michael Barton then sat on Mr Maddox’s chest, puncturing his lung. The attack knocked Mr Maddox unconscious.
The court was told during the attack that Mr Maddox’s wife repeatedly told the pair to stop.
Judge Katherine McGinness said the offending was “violent” and the pair’s “explanations of the offending was not acceptable”.
“(Mr Maddox’s) behaviour may have been cowardly and bullying towards his wife, and yours was cowardly and bullying towards him,” she said.
“On too many occasion in our community people try to take the law into their own hands or otherwise treat others in a vigilante type manner.”
Ms McGinness said it was also disrespectful to Mr Maddox’s wife, whose home they had invaded despite her requests not to.
It is the first time either of the Bartons have been in trouble with the law.
Steven Barton apologised to the woman at the time.
Yesterday, his barrister Scott Lynch, instructed by Allen & Searing Lawyers, tendered a written apology from Steven Barton to the court.
“I am uncertain of why I chose to behave the way I did that night but I believe it was a consequence of the tension that had been brewing between our households,” he wrote.
“I can honestly say from the depths of my heart that my actions on that night were a once-off event and a mistake I will never make again.”
Mr Lynch said since the incident his client has been moved from his position as a hospital security guard to doing inventory.
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Michael Barton’s barrister Bernard Reilly, instructed by Bamberry Lawyers, said his client did not go to the Coombabah home with the intention of assaulting anyone.
Mr Reilly said the behaviour was out of character for the machine operator.
He said Michael Barton, 38, was willing to pay all of his family savings of $5000 in compensation as a show of remorse.
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