A man who punched his brother in the face avoided going to jail after the prosecutor stood up and argued that he had not crossed the custodial threshold.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The 19-year-old man, who is not named to protect the identity of the victim, was charged with reckless wounding after splitting open his older brother's eyebrow with a single punch.
The man pleaded guilty and custodial escort officers were called into the courtroom ready to take the man down to the cells in Orange Local Court.
Magistrate David Day said he would ordinarily "be reaching for full-time custody," for the offence.
However, police prosecutor Sergeant Beau Riley argued the custodial threshold was not met and it was the man's first offence.
Sergeant Riley said the injury was caused by one punch and the victim was the man's larger, older brother who continued to fight despite his injury.
"The fight would have continued if it was a boxing match and it did," he said.
Sergeant Riley said many brothers in many families fight each other without consequence but in this case a witness reported it to the police.
According to police, both men were living together in Orange when they got into an argument relating to the victim's baby crying at about 5.40am on November 30, 2020.
The fight between the brothers turned physical and the younger brother went outside while the victim packed up his son and put him in a pram.
The victim confronted him on the verandah and said, "wait 'til I drop [the child] off and come back. I'll punch the c*** out of you."
The accused then punched the victim near his right eyebrow, causing his skin to split in a triangular shape that resembled a deep hole.
The victim fell to the ground but the two men continued to wrestle.
A neighbour phoned the police who found the victim pushing the child in the pram up the street.
He was taken by ambulance to hospital for treatment to his injuries.
Mr Day said the offence still required a conviction.
"The injury to his brother was quite severe," he said. He gave the man a 12-month Community Correction Order and imposed a two-year Apprehended Violence Order.
To read more stories, download the Central Western Daily news app in the Apple Store or Google Play.
HAVE YOUR SAY
Send a letter to the editor using the form below:
