Bradley Johann Edward Neale on trial for waterboarding, choking claims

A Qld businessman accused of “waterboarding” his former partner with a hose and attempting to run her down claims the relationship was just “dysfunctional”, not criminal.

A man is on trial, accused of waterboarding, choking and assaulting his partner. Photo: iStock

A man accused of “waterboarding” his former partner and trying to run her down claims his driving was just “erratic”, not dangerous, a jury has heard.

Bradley Johann Edward Neale, who owns construction business Top View Maintenance, has pleaded not guilty in Rockhampton District Court to five charges.

Those charges are two counts of common assault, one of choking, one of wilful damage and one of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle.

Along with allegedly choking the woman, he is also accused of “waterboarding” her with a garden hose and dangerously and deliberately driving at her as she walked along Dean Street, Frenchville, near her workplace one Saturday.

All evidence has now been presented, and both the Crown prosecutor and Mr Neale’s defence barrister Russell Pearce addressed the jury ahead of deliberations on Thursday afternoon.

Mr Pearce said the crux of the defence in this case was questioning whether the woman’s testimony was believed “beyond a reasonable doubt”.

He accused the woman of carrying out her own violent acts during the relationship, which he described as “dysfunctional” and threatening “to take him for half of everything”, including his business.

Mr Pearce told the jury his client alleged the financial threats happened just before the Dean St driving incident on February 18, 2023.

He said the motivation behind the driving was “the green-eyed monster” as Mr Neale had seen the woman the night before at a Rockhampton pub with a man she later introduced to police as her “partner”.

He also accused the woman of lying about the motive for her trip to Townsville a month before the Dean St incident, pointing out that she testified that the new partner lived “between Rockhampton and Townsville” and she gave birth to a child in November of that year.

Mr Pearce said neither his client nor the woman “covered themselves in glory”.

Crown Prosecutor Joshua Phillips argued “there’s a gulf of difference between dysfunctional and criminal conduct”.

“Violence isn’t dysfunctional, it’s criminal,” he told the jury.

“Grabbing and threatening to punch isn’t dysfunctional; it’s criminal.

“Choking your partner, hindering your ability to breathe, is not dysfunctional; it’s criminal.

“Waterboarding, using the hose to almost drown, isn’t dysfunctional; it’s criminal.

“Chasing your ex along a public street, across traffic and up on kerbs in your ute, isn’t dysfunctional; that’s criminal.”

He said the driving across opposing traffic on Dean St in Frenchville was “not some erratic, odd manoeuvre”.

“He was deliberately targeting her, driving across opposing traffic, mounting the kerb just outside Sings (restaurant), circling her twice in a taunting fashion,” Mr Phillips said.

He also said there were independent witnesses of this incident, “with no axe to grind, no skin in the game”.

The court heard Mr Neale has pleaded guilty to a charge concerning a flurry of nasty messages he sent to the complainant over a 24-hour period in 2023.

The messages included “deceitful lying c---“, “you have a lot of pain on the way”, “slut”, “I’m going to get the dogs”, “you are so deceitful it makes me sick”, “where’s milkshake boy now” and “what’s it like being a deceitful c--, I want to know”.

Originally published as Bradley Johann Edward Neale on trial for waterboarding, choking claims