Chace Kevin Fitzpatrick pleads guilty to public nuisance, assaulting and obstructing police

A father-to-be has faced court after he headbutted his friend and acted aggressively towards police, resulting in officers drawing their tasers.

A Yandina father-to-be has been urged to get his act together after he was sentenced for spitting at a police officer.

Chace Kevin Fitzpatrick, 21, pleaded guilty in Maroochydore Magistrates Court on June 7, 2022, to assaulting a police officer, obstructing a police officer and two counts of public nuisance.

Police prosecutor Senior Constable Lee Allan said police had been called to Coolum Beach Hotel on March 20, 2022, after Fitzpatrick had behaved aggressively in the vicinity of the pub.

“His friends could not calm him and he continued to be confrontational to people outside of the hotel and it’s said in the facts it is here he headbutted his female friend,” Constable Allan said.

“The defendant has faced police, shaped up clenching his fists.

“The defendant was close enough to present their tasers.

“At that point he’s pulled his clothing, including his underwear, to his ankles and raised his hands in the air and laid on the ground.

“At the watch house he was somewhat violent in nature.”

Chace Kevin Fitzpatrick pleaded guilty to public nuisance after causing a scene at the Coolum Beach Hotel. Picture: Google

Fitzpatrick was charged with assaulting a police officer, after he spat on a female officer in the Maroochydore watch house later that night.

Constable Allan said Fitzpatrick was heavily intoxicated at the time of the offending.

Solicitor Rod Morgan said his client doesn’t “have a clear memory of what happened” but wanted to get his life back on track.

“ … in the clear light of day he regrets what’s occurred and is motivated to take some steps to avoid finding himself back in this position again,” Mr Morgan said.

The court heard that Fitzpatrick had a lengthy criminal record.

Magistrate Maxine Baldwin said Fitzpatrick, who intended to move to Cairns with his pregnant partner for a fresh start, needed to learn to control his behaviour.

“You need some assistance with behavioural modification,” Ms Baldwin said.

“Anybody who can’t manage their alcohol and binges is an alcoholic.

“You’re 21 and you’ve certainly packed a lot in, I’m not saying my mathematics is absolutely perfect but … since you were an adult ... in the last four years you’ve been sentenced to just over four years in jail.

“The point I’m trying to look at is the trajectory, and I’m thinking to myself that if he’s got that amount of jail in his life and he’s living for another 60 years he’s going to spend more and more time in prison.”

Fitzpatrick, who was on a suspended sentence at the time of the offending, was jailed for six months.

He will be eligible for parole on September 13, 2022.

Originally published as Chace Kevin Fitzpatrick pleads guilty to public nuisance, assaulting and obstructing police