Man avoids jail over bashing
A man today avoided immediate time behind bars for bashing a deaf and mute man after he was given a second chance by a Perth judge.
Joshua William Bignell was aged 18 when he took part in an assault on the 28-year-old man along with a friend in 2012.
Last year he was handed a pre-sentence order so a District Court judge could decide on whether he should be sent to jail, with the same judge today ruling he should be spared immediate time behind bars.
Bignell's victim had been making his way home from work and was near the Oats Street train station in Carlisle when the pair set upon him on June 11, 2012.
The attack left the man with damage to his eyesight, which the court today was told had special significance because the victim needed his sight to communicate via Auslan - a signing language.
Judge Philip Eaton considered penalties for Bignell back in February 2013, noting that railway station attacks were "too prominent", before deciding to put the teenager on a one-year pre-sentence order that would determine his final penalty.
Today marked the end of the one-year order, with the judge previously warning Bignell he faced grim consequences if he re-offended within the 12 months.
"I did so having taken the view that your offending warranted well and truly a term of imprisonment to be immediately served and that you might be afforded the opportunity to address your problems," Judge Eaton said today as he explained the path he had taken.
"I ordered that the matter stand adjourned effectively until today with two reviews four months apart along the way, directing that there be a report at each of those intervals."
In court this morning, Judge Eaton noted that Bignell had performed well on the order to such an extent that he no longer deserved an immediate stint behind bars.
"You've completed all aspects of the order," Judge Eaton said, noting Bignell's progress with employment and accommodation.
Bignell was handed 12 months jail suspended for 18 months with the condition that he undergo drug and alcohol counselling.
He was warned that if he breached the suspended term he risked being sent straight behind bars.
