Western Downs man Benjamin Mcniven re-sentenced after quitting community service four hours in

A Western Downs man has blamed a bad back for the reason he quit his court-mandated community service just four hours into a 10 week stint.

A Western Downs man who completed less than five hours of his 75 hour community service sentence before calling it quits has found himself back before court.

Benjamin Mcniven appeared in Dalby Magistrates Court on Tuesday and pleaded guilty to failing to engage with community service.

On April 16, 2024 Mcniven was sentenced to 75 hours of community service packing potatoes after pleading guilty to common assault and obstructing a police officer.

Mcniven, who complained about having a sore back, completed just six per cent of his required service, about four-and-a-half hours, before no longer engaging.

The court was told he had told his community service officer that he had back pain from leaning over to pack the boxes but hadn’t followed any of the proper channels to find alternative work.

Mcniven told the court he had no problem completing his hours but didn’t want to do work that required him bending over.

His community service officer told the court there were no other available community service locations in Dalby and the nearest was in Chinchilla.

She did say however that she would see if he could complete the work from home.

Mcniven was re-sentenced to 75 hours of community service and received no punishment for the breach.

Originally published as Western Downs man Benjamin Mcniven re-sentenced after quitting community service four hours in