Toowoomba region dad pleads guilty in Warwick Magistrates Court to assault occasioning bodily harm on teenage son

A court was told a Darling Downs man was ‘very concerned’ for his son leading up to a brutal bashing in the family kitchen, resulting in bruising and lacerations.

A Toowoomba region man has been sentenced following a horror attack on his own son earlier this year.

A court has heard a Toowoomba region man was “very concerned” for his son before unleashing a brutal assault on the boy.

The man in his 40s - who cannot be identified for legal reasons - pleaded guilty in Warwick Magistrates Court on September 23 to one charge of assault occasioning bodily harm (domestic violence).

Police prosecutor Sergeant Chris Willson told the court that at the family home the man told his son to make his school lunch for the next day.

When he refused and said he would make it in the morning, the man began to “get angry and start yelling”..

“Why are you yelling, I haven’t done anything wrong,” the prosecutor recalled – the words of the boy.

Tensions boiled over in the kitchen, and the man grabbed his teenage son by the front of his shirt.

“He pushed him and caused him to connect with an electric frying pan in the sink, and continued pushing his son until he was on the floor with his back against the cabinet,” Sergeant Willson said.

“He has then put his hands on the kitchen cupboard, and kneed his son three times, while his son put his hands up to cover his head.

“The force from (the man’s) knee has caused the boys head to hit the cupboard, and the defendant has stopped and walked away.”

The boy suffered bruising to the left side of his head, his jaw, and his arm, as well as a laceration under his right ear and redness in his mouth.

The day after the horror attack, the boy left to stay with a family member and reported the matter to police.

Sergeant Willson told the magistrate that disturbingly the man had two prior convictions of common assault and assault occasioning bodily harm, albeit from a decade ago.

The sergeant labelled the offending as “concerning” and the offence should “well and truly go beyond a fine”.

The man had a strong work history, and had “always worked to some extent” defence lawyer Danielle Gill said.

The defendant had worked multiple labouring roles before becoming a sales representative.

“He was subjected to physical violence as a youth by his own father, and he is working through that with a psychologist,” the lawyer said on behalf of her client.

“(The father) was very concerned with the boy, he was the sole carer, and there was a history leading up to it,” Ms Gill said.

“The child in question had issues in the past in relation to not participating in school, drinking alcohol and fighting other youths.

“He was very concerned for the child.”

Ms Gill told the court the man had attended a psychologist and that “his goal is that it never happens again”.

“There is no excuse,” the lawyer said.

Magistrate Janice Crawford described the event as “losing your cool while telling him to make lunch” and noted that the man was at a low risk of reoffending.

“You do have a history of some offences of personal violence but they are very, very dated,” Ms Crawford said.

The man was sentenced to a six month probation order, with convictions recorded.

Originally published as Toowoomba region dad pleads guilty in Warwick Magistrates Court to assault occasioning bodily harm on teenage son