Teen to be sentenced over biting police officer in Alice Springs
A TEENAGER who bit a police officer while being arrested is due to be sentenced next week.
Centralian Advocate
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A TEENAGER who bit a police officer while being arrested is due to be sentenced next week.
Shalayna Lechleitner, 18, pleaded guilty in Alice Springs Local Court to assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest and behaving disorderly in a public place.
Around midnight on February 13 she was approached by police in Todd Mall while in a group of women who had been drinking.
The court heard she verbally abused the police officers and when they tried to arrest her she tried to break free and swung her arms around before biting an officer.
Defense lawyer Jacob Henderson said Lechleitner had no prior convictions.
Mr Henderson also said his client had experienced additional suffering after a private Facebook group, Alice Springs Mparntwe Forum, posted an “inflammatory” version of the original news article published by NT NEWS.
“The article has been rewritten and posted on the Alice Springs forum. The post is not written in the same manner as the article that appeared in the paper,” Mr Henderson said.
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“It does seem to have a different skew. It refers to blackouts as ‘primitive anger’ and refers to this ‘amazing resident’ who suffers from anger blackouts without becoming unconscious.
“I’ve spoken to the psychologist…she has told me the information is completely false.”
Mr Henderson said the post on the forum also gave the allusion that she was “someone who could have rabies”.
He said in his submission the suffering caused by the post tipped the line for a good behaviour bond over a suspended sentence.
Lechleitner was granted bail to appear before court on March 17 for sentencing.
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