Burnie court: Magistrate blasts drunken behaviour on King Island

A crayfisherman and a gardener were among a handful of King Island residents who faced a magistrate over drunken behaviour, with a magistrate blasting them for their antics.

King Island. Picture: Supplied

A Tasmanian magistrate has called out the “appalling behaviour” of a number of King island residents who committed offences while heavily intoxicated.

Magistrate Leanne Topfer told commercial cray fisherman Ashleigh Cook he was “no longer a child” as she fined him $2000 after he pleaded guilty to abusing police in the island.

Cook told the Burnie Magistrates Court via video link he was “staying out of the pub” and was remorseful for telling the local police to “f--k off”.

Magistrate Topfer reminded Cook he had priors for abusing police.

“You just can’t go around behaving like that. You are not a child. You are 33.”

Blake Reed

Gardener Blake Reed then appeared, pleading guilty to abusing his elderly neighbour and smashing her window with a wheelie bin.

“I hate King Island, I hate these people,” Reed yelled during the incident.

As he was being arrested Reed tried to break free sending one police officer to the ground.

The court was told that when Reed sobered up in the police cells at Currie he apologised to police and wrote a letter to his neighbour saying he was sorry.

“This behaviour is pretty appalling. The incident must have been very distressing for your neighbour,” Magistrate Topfer told Reed before fining him $750.

Another case was adjourned in which the accused told the court he was so drunk he could not remember driving before waking up in hospital.

Simon Peter Frosi appeared on a charge of driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor, with his case adjourned for Frosi to reappear in June.

He told the court he rides a push bike now.