TASMANIA v HEATH SCOTT McGOWAN 26 OCTOBER 2009
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE CRAWFORD CJ
Heath Scott McGowan pleaded guilty on an indictment to robbery and on a complaint to two charges of common assault and charges of resisting a police officer and threatening a police officer.
On 18 September last he went to a Launceston skate rink in an extremely intoxicated condition. He pushed the back of a 14-year-old boy, forcing him through a door and onto the ground. He then picked him up and threw him back onto the ground. He kicked him in the head and demanded from him that he hand over his wallet or he would kill him. Having obtained $8 from the boy he kicked him in the head once again. The boy suffered minor injuries to his neck, head, eye, chest and calf as a result. During the course of the attack he was in fear of his life.
The accused then went into the sports complex. He struck a 14-year-old girl in the face when she was sitting in a chair. Then he punched a 13-year-old boy seven times in the general area of his head, when the boy was also sitting in a chair.
Four police officers were involved in arresting and restraining the accused, who struggled and thrashed to resist them and threatened to smash or kill one or more officers.
He is 35 years old. He was in employment at the time and appears to have a good employment history. Abuse of alcohol has been prominent in his life. He has a significant record in Queensland, Western Australia and this State that includes several offences of dishonesty, two assaults, one aggravated assault on a female, three assaults occasioning bodily harm, one threaten police, two resist police and one obstruct police. He has also committed many other offences, alcohol being connected to a great number of them.
His unprovoked offences against children in a public place must be condemned and clearly demand imprisonment, as do his offences against the police officers. His quick pleas of guilty are mitigating, although the case against him was a strong one. The sentence of imprisonment will be reduced by three months as a result of his pleas.
Heath Scott McGowan, convictions for all of the offences are recorded and you are sentenced to imprisonment for 21 months from 18 September 2009. It is ordered that you are not to be eligible for parole until you have served 12 months of the imprisonment. Finally, it is ordered that you pay victims of crime compensation levies totalling $130 within 28 days of your release from prison.