Edward Hatapua Crampton, 56, sentenced to to jail for ‘vicious” head stomping attack

A “vicious” head stomping attack on a Cairns father along the Esplanade that left him with injuries so severe he had to learn to walk and talk again, has earned the attacker a three year jail sentence.

Edward Hatapua Crampton pleaded guilty to the brutal assault. Picture: Facebook

A “vicious” head stomping attack on a Cairns father along the Esplanade that left him with injuries so severe he had to learn to walk and talk again, has earned the attacker a three year jail sentence.

Edward Hatapua Crampton, 56, pleaded guilty in Cairns District Court to one count of grievous bodily harm against 44-year-old Matthew Turner on the evening of August 31, 2023 on the Cairns Esplanade outside a convenience store.

CCTV footage of the attack, which lasted less than a minute, was played to the court during the sentencing this week, and showed Crampton punching Mr Turner to the ground before stomping on his head with shoes on while he lay “prone and defenceless”.

The court was told Mr Turner’s injuries were so severe he had to undergo an emergency craniotomy to relieve pressure on his brain, then spent 10 days in the intensive care unit.

Father of five Matthew Turner had to learn to walk, talk and eat again after the assault, and still suffers almost daily migraines. Picture: Supplied

Crown Prosecutor Pip Harvey Ross said Mr Turner then spent three weeks in rehabilitation, where he had to learn to walk, talk and eat again; he continues to suffer almost daily migraines nearly two years on.

Ms Harvey Ross said Crampton had a criminal history of assault offences and public nuisance, and was on parole at the time of the attack, having been sentenced for a violent offence just eight days earlier.

“Shortly after the attack, the defendant rode off on his bicycle,” Ms Harvey Ross said.

In the earlier offence, Crampton abused and spat on staff at a liquor store, and pushed monitors off a counter, and was sentenced to six months jail – a sentence that he had since been required to serve.

Edward Hatapua Crampton, 56. “viciously” stomped on the head of a man he claimed had been “belligerent” towards him. Picture: Facebook

Defence barrister James Sheridan said the video of the attack, in which Mr Turner can be seen approaching and talking to Crampton and a woman who were sitting on the ground, had no audio but he was able to fill in some of the gaps around the “context” of the attack.

He said the woman in the video told police she had been approached by Crampton for ‘a job’ – sexual relations for payment – and she had described Mr Turner as intervening and “trying to be a big hero”.

“There was some degree of belligerence,” Mr Sheridan said.

Mr Sheridan said there could be no justification for the stomp on the head, which he described “vicious”.

“At that stage, the (victim) was prone, defenceless, he was on the ground ... but there was a lead-up … and it cannot be described as gratuitous with no situational context,” he said.

“The memories of the parties concerned have been affected by a number of reasons, whether that be intoxicating substances or the client’s injuries.”

Judge Dean Morzone KC said he hoped Crampton’s time in prison would “bring about a change” in his life.

Judge Dean Morzone said he accepted Crampton, a father of seven and grandfather of many more, had shown remorse through his guilty plea and wished to reconnect with his family.

He sentenced Crampton to three years and three months jail and said that, taking into account the 452 days he had served of the sentence, he would be eligible to apply for parole immediately.

“Hopefully, this brings about a change, and has shown it’s not the way to handle things and that the community condemns this type of behavior,” Judge Morzone said.

Originally published as Edward Hatapua Crampton, 56, sentenced to to jail for ‘vicious” head stomping attack