Custody for ‘brutal’ assault

Press, 1 June 1989, Page 23

Custody for ‘brutal’ assault

“A brutal, cowardly assault,” was how Judge Hay described an offence which earned a man corrective training. Michael Shane Ellen, aged 18, unemployed, appeared for sentence in the District Court yesterday for assaulting lan George Gardner on April 30.

As a result of the assault Gardner suffered a broken arm and was left unconscious after being punched and kicked by Ellen and an associate.

In imposing the custodial sentence Judge Hay said the community was heartily fed up with this sort of mindless violence.

According to the police summary, Ellen and the associate arrived at a house which the complainant was minding for the occupants.

They began punched the complainant about the head and body. After being knocked to the ground he was dragged outside where he was then repeatedly kicked by his attackers.

After an operation to the arm the victim was discharged from hospital on May 3. Ellen, in explanation to the police, claimed the victim had accused him of damaging his motor car. Counsel, Mrs A. M. Edwards, said her client did not know how Mr Gardner broke his arm as he, the defendant, was wearing rubber soled shoes at the time. SUPERVISION But for her health problems a woman convicted of cultivating 50 cannabis plants would have been

sent to prison, said the Judge. Instead Jana Allfrey, aged 24, unemployed (Miss Margaret Sewell), was sentenced to supervision for 12 months, during which period she was to undergo counselling as directed.

An application by Miss Sewell for suppression of her client’s name was refused by the Judge. The police found the plants, varying in height between 0.5 m and 1.7 m, when executing a search warrant at her address.

Allfrey told police she smoked about 24 cannabis cigarettes a day to alleviate pain caused by a serious medical condition. Miss Sewell said there was a medical background to the offence. It was clear that her client was labouring under ex-

tensive difficulties with her medical problems. Allfrey, she said, had not touched cannabis since the offence and was now using anti-depressant drugs prescribed by her doctor. RAPE CHARGE Interim suppression of name was refused for a man, aged 25, accused of raping a woman, aged 19. Oltaches Tangaroa, unemployed, was remanded in custody to next Wednesday. He is charged with committing the offence on May 27. In seeking bail a duty solicitor, Mr Shaun O’Neill, said the accused was a first offender. He did not know where the complaintant lived so there was little, if any, likelihood of him contact-

ing her. The alleged offence took place at the home of the defendant. PERIODIC DETENTION Periodic detention for four months was ordered to be done by a man earlier convicted of breaking into a Hornby motorcycle dealer’s yard and who, on hearing the police arrive, drove off on a new $4OOO machine. In addition David James Hatipov, aged 18, unemployed (Mr Mervyn Glue), was sentenced to supervision for six months.

The Judge ordered that Hatipov’s passport be held by the Court and returned to him on the expiration of the term of periodic detention.

Hatipov, who committed the offences on April 20, later told the police he

had intended stealing the motorcycle to sell for extra money.

He was arrested at Christchurch Airport as he was leaving on a oneway air ticket to Australia. DRUG OFFENCE A police helicopter search for cannabis in the Leeston area in March resulted in the court appearance of Garner Douglas Teale yesterday. Spotted growing in Teale’s garden were six cannabis plants, between Im and 2m high. Teale, aged 36, a selfemployed bone carver, said the drug was for his own use.

He was convicted of cultivating cannabis on March 3 and was remanded on bail to June 15 for sentence.