Shane Gardiner: Palmerston DV thug jailed for six years and two months

A Palmerston DV abuser who bashed his long-term partner twice, then pressured her from behind bars to drop the complaints against him, has copped a hefty jail sentence.

Gray man Shane Gardiner, 32. Picture: Facebook

Updated: A Palmerston domestic violence thug who bashed his partner twice has been described by a Territory judge as a “brutal bully”.

Gray man Shane Gardiner, 34, was sentenced earlier this month in the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory after pleading guilty to 26 charges.

The majority of the offending related to his persistent abuse of his partner, with whom he has three children, between September 4, 2022, and May 2023.

Most seriously, Gardiner admitted to two counts of aggravated assault, attempting to pervert the course of justice, two counts of damaging property, dangerous driving, and 15 counts of contravening a domestic violence order.

On the morning of Saturday, September 4, 2022, Gardiner’s partner returned home early after a night out on the town with a girlfriend, before falling asleep.

She was woken three hours later by Gardiner, who had flown into a rage and punched her repeatedly in the head, before smashing her phone.

The woman sustained a broken arm in the attack.

Several months later, on December 17, Gardiner assaulted the woman again, kicking her and wrestling her on the ground before fleeing in her vehicle, which he later used to evade officers seeking to arrest him.

He was arrested on December 24, 2022.

Northern Territory Supreme Court Justice Judith Kelly

Once remanded in pre-sentence custody, he contacted his partner repeatedly in a bid to get her to retract her complaints or stop attending court, calls which were the subject of the attempted perversion of justice charge.

At Gardiner’s sentencing hearing, Justice Judith Kelly told the court the defendant had a “lengthy criminal history” that included multiple convictions for unlawful use of a motor vehicle, theft, trespass, damaging property and aggravated assault.

Gardiner had an “unsettled” childhood, featuring numerous schools, early exposure to drug and alcohol abuse and domestic violence, and heroin-addict parents.

He started drinking alcohol at the age of 11 and by the age of 14 or 15, was stealing to find his need for grog.

A psychological report indicated the presence of a mild impairment and complex post-traumatic stress disorder.

“This condition can lead to severe emotional dysregulation, cognitive distortions and maladaptive beliefs about self and relationships,” Justice Kelly said.

Justice Kelly said Gardiner’s victim, his partner, had requested he spend no more time in prison, but the judge said she did not place “great weight” on her request.

“To date, you have not been a good partner. You have been a brutal bully,” Justice Kelly said.

She sentenced Gardiner to six years and two months’ imprisonment, backdated to March 27 last year in order to account for a prior sentence.

He will be eligible for parole after serving half his sentence.

Bashings, control, verbal abuse: DV thug’s reign of terror revealed

June 9: A Palmerston man bashed his partner after she went out clubbing with a friend, smashed two mobile phones, pinched the woman’s vehicle and evaded police in it, then called her 317 times from prison, a court has heard.

Gray man Shane Gardiner, 32, pleaded guilty in the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory at Darwin on Friday to 26 offences, the majority related to his persistent abuse of his partner, with whom he has three children, between September 4, 2022, and May 2023.

Most seriously, he pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated assault, attempting to pervert the course of justice, two counts of damaging property, dangerous driving, and 15 counts of contravening a domestic violence order.

On the morning of September 4, 2022, Gardiner’s partner returned to his residence with a friend after a night of partying, the court heard.

At 8.30am, he woke her by throwing clothing at her, then pushed her onto a cot, before punching the woman several times to the head.

She fled and contacted police via her friend’s mobile phone, which Gardiner then grabbed and smashed on the driveway.

Shane Gardiner, 32, has pleaded guilty in the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory at Darwin to 26 offences. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Gardiner began punching her again, causing her to fall to the ground.

The defendant jumped the fence and fled when police arrived.

The court heard the woman suffered a fractured forearm as a result of the assault.

It didn’t heal properly and she required surgery.

On December 17, 2022, the pair were drinking alcohol at the woman’s Wulagi residence when they began arguing.

Gardiner threatened to throw a glass stubby at the woman, who became frightened and asked him to leave.

He returned later, honking in her driveway in a bid to lure her outside.

When she emerged, he kicked her to the ground and then the pair wrestled over her mobile phone, which Gardiner obtained and smashed.

Gardiner then decamped with her vehicle, which was detected by officers the following morning nearby.

Officers activated their sirens in a bid to detain Gardiner, but he evaded police by speeding away at 100km/h in a 50km/h zone, the court heard.

He was arrested at the woman’s residence on December 24, 2022, and remanded in pre-sentence custody.

However, his reign of terror did not end there.

The court heard he contacted the victim 317 times via telephone in contravention of a police domestic violence order.

During some of the calls, he wheedled her to drop the complaints against him.

On other occasions, he called her derogatory names such as “bi--h’” and “s--t”.

She remains supportive of Gardiner and was present in court.

Gardiner’s defence lawyer requested an adjournment to enable the commissioning of a number of reports.

“My client had a lot of issues in his youth and upbringing regarding his family situation,” lawyer Michael Drury said.

Gardiner will return to court on August 14 for defence submissions.