Jesse James Horne found guilty of van attack on ex-father-in-law

A Toowoomba man’s split-second decision to ram his van into his ex-father-in-law has cost him four years behind bars and left a family shattered by violence.

A split‑second decision at a South Burnett service station has left a Toowoomba father jailed, his ex‑father‑in‑law with long-lasting injuries and and his family carrying traumatic memories of the incident.

A split-second decision at a South Burnett service station has left a Toowoomba father jailed, his ex-father-in-law with long-lasting injuries and his family carrying traumatic memories of the incident.

Jesse James Horne, 30, was accused of deliberately driving his van into his ex-father-in-law, pinning him between two cars and breaking his leg in front of multiple witnesses during a violent altercation that took place at a South Burnett petrol station on July 27, 2023.

The multi-day trial began in Kingaroy District Court on Tuesday, November 25, and concluded with a finding of guilty.

Crown prosecutor Sarah McCray told the court the crash happened just hours after a “domestic disturbance” took place between Mr Horne’s parents and his ex-partner, the mother of his two young children.

The court heard the pair went to the woman’s home in Wondai to collect their grandchildren when they got into an altercation, which was reported to police later that morning.

Mr Horne’s parents testified that their ex-daughter-in-law was the aggressor, and she claimed they attacked her.

There was evidence she had been grabbed by the hair by Mr Horne’s mother, and she was reportedly seen with blood on her ear and her hand when police arrived at the home soon after the interaction.

The court heard this prompted Neil Robbins, Mr Horne’s ex-father-in-law and the victim in the matter, to confront the Horne family at the Wondai police station, where he allegedly threatened to kill Mr Horne’s father.

Around 2.15pm, the Horne family pulled into Liberty Fuels on the corner of Youngman Street and Queen Street in Kingaroy.

Minutes later, Mr Robbins also arrived at the petrol station, with Ms McCray telling the court he was coincidentally in the area and approached the family because he wanted to find out more about what had happened that morning.

Jesse James Horne, 30, was accused of deliberately driving his van into his ex‑father‑in‑law, pinning him between two cars and breaking his leg in front of multiple witnesses during a violent altercation that took place at a South Burnett petrol station on July 27, 2023.

CCTV from the Liberty Fuel station showed Mr Robbins appearing to stride purposefully with speed towards the silver Kia Carnival the defendant was driving and the black Holden Cruze his father was driving, which were parked next to each other at the entrance of the shop.

Mr Horne’s mother was in the front passenger seat of the people mover.

In the CCTV, Mr Robbins was seen striking at the drivers side of the Kia, which quickly reversed and pulled away.

Mr Robbins then moved to the black sedan, opened the drivers side door and was seen grabbing at and punching Mr Horne’s father inside the vehicle.

Ms McCray showed the court a slowed-down version of the attack, and said Mr Robbins appears to only throw one punch.

Within seconds, the Kia came back into view and crashed into Mr Robbins, briefly pinning him between the two cars, before reversing, driving away and parking nearby.

The whole incident, from when Mr Robbins first approached Mr Horne and the Kia to when he was hit by Mr Horne, took less than 20 seconds.

Multiple witnesses told the court Mr Horne appeared to be acting in an aggressive manner towards Mr Robbins directly after the crash, with one person describing it as “having another go at him”.

The prosecution argued the CCTV supported this evidence, showing footage to the court where Mr Horne appeared to “step up” to Mr Robbins while he was on the ground, gesturing towards him, with his mother seen stepping in front of him at one point.

Mr Robbins was left with a broken leg, and was taken to Toowoomba Hospital.

A forensic crash investigator found it was likely Mr Horne was travelling at 21 or 22km/p/h when he struck Mr Robbins.

Ms McCray acknowledged that tensions were high between the two families that day, but said Mr Horne was not simply trying to stop an assault on his father.

“This is a man who made a conscious, deliberate decision to hit his father-in-law with his car,” she said.

“There was no excuse for his conduct that day …”

Barrister Tristan Carlos said the “hysteria of the event”, the speed at which everything happened and the belief by the Horne family that they had been followed from one town to another by an “aggressive man” who had allegedly made verbal threats to them culminated in the events before the court.

“This isn’t vengeance, members of the jury,” he said.

“You can’t pause life, you can’t put things in frame-by-frame.

“This is aiding another precious human being from serious harm that very well (could have) developed.”

According to court officials, the jury, made up of eight men and four women, took around two hours of deliberation to declare Mr Horne guilty of one count of dangerous operation of a vehicle causing grievous bodily harm, domestic violence, and one count of wilful damage.

Judge Philip McCarthy sentenced the young father to four years imprisonment, to be eligible for parole on July 28, 2027.

Originally published as Jesse James Horne found guilty of van attack on ex-father-in-law