STATE OF TASMANIA v RAHN MARCUS HANSSON 5 NOVEMBER 2020
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE ESTCOURT J
The defendant, Rahn Marcus Hansson, has pleaded guilty to one count of assault.
At the time of the offence he was 29 years of age, he is now 31.
The complainant is Joseph Snape. He was 26 years of age at the time of the offence.
The defendant and the complainant were not known to each other prior to this incident.
At approximately 1:30am on Saturday 30 June 2018, the defendant and the complainant were at the Waratah Hotel on Murray Street, each with respective associates.
The complainant’s brother and the defendant commenced a verbal altercation with one another and this escalated to them pushing and shoving each other. The altercation appeared to be calming down but then escalated again.
The complainant was one of the people attempting to calm the matter down but was not directly involved and did not have any physical contact with the defendant at that time.
The defendant punched the complainant once to the head, which caused him to fall to the ground and he was rendered unconscious shortly afterwards.
The complainant was transported to the Royal Hobart Hospital.
The defendant remained at the scene and spoke to arresting police and was arrested and detained until he was sober before being interviewed.
The complainant’s injuries were that he had a fracture to the right mastoid done with blood in the middle ear, and contusions of the left frontal and temporal lobes of the brain and also a bleed into the brain.
He had post-traumatic amnesia for 6 days, and as a result of the insult to the brain, he had mild difficulties with language and mild cognitive deficits.
After inpatient rehabilitation he was followed up as an outpatient, where he still had some symptoms of the brain insult, being occasional mild headaches and dizziness. A cognitive assessment done by a psychologist showed that he had made good recovery, but his verbal fluency is reduced compared to his potential, and there was occasional difficulty with word-finding.
In effect, the complainant has made a full recovery.
I have been read a victim impact statement from Mr Snape. He was profoundly affected for at least six months and could not work for two months and was worried that he might be left with a permanent disability.
I have had the benefit of a pre-sentence report which states that the defendant advised that contributing factors to the offence were being held down and assaulted by three men after he was trying to help an intoxicated and emotionally distressed woman. He advised this was not common behaviour for him or a situation he would usually find himself in. When questioned on the victim in the offence he named the complainant. He stated that he has taken the following action to address his behaviour. He has not gone out late at night drinking with friends, he is focusing on work and family, and he has worked to better manage his emotions. The defendant’s partner confirmed those statements.
The defendant’s counsel informs me, without dissent from the Crown, that the defendant rarely goes out socialising, but on this night he finished his work for Dark Mofo and had a drink with a friend. They went to see a colleague who was playing in a band at the Waratah Hotel. He was intoxicated at the time.
The assault occurred after the defendant and another male or males seemingly agreed to participate in a fight. However, the complainant was not a party to that agreement, and the defendant accepts, as he outlined to police, that he threw the punch as he was returning to a standing position, and when other males were coming off him.
There is evidence of remorse. The defendant’s immediate reaction contained concern for the complainant and this was noted by attending police officers. One officer stated that the defendant approached him as soon as he arrived at the scene and volunteered that he had assaulted the complainant. The officer further stated that Mr Hansson said that he was sorry and that he was not sure why he had done what he had done. He remained at the scene and told the officer that he should be arrested as he had punched the complainant.
The defendant’s plea of guilty may be regarded as an early one, subsequent to the time when an earlier indictment was abandoned in respect of a more serious crime, and negotiation occurred between the defendant’s counsel and the Crown.
The defendant has one relevant prior matter, a common assault, which dates from 2009 and which arose while he was in the prison environment
His work history is sound and he has held regular employment with companies running entertainment events, festivals and conference work. He works as an audio-visual technician.
Unfortunately, due to Covid-19, his employment with MONA was put on hold, with no hope of the company employing him resuming conference and exhibition work until February 2021. As a consequence, and to his credit, he searched for and applied for various other employment vacancies, and secured a casual position at the Grand Hotel in Huonville as a kitchen hand.
He has been dedicated to his partner for over 10 years. He is a committed and engaged father to three children, aged 4, 3 and 1.
The defendant developed depressive symptoms as a teenager and was prescribed antidepressants at around age 18, after period of engaging in self-harm behaviour. He was later assessed by a psychologist as having a history of emotional instability, experiencing depression and social anxiety.
The assault was spontaneous and arose in somewhat unusual circumstances. Nevertheless the consequences for the complainant were relatively serious, and could have been far worse.
The defendant is convicted and I impose a single sentence of 9 months’ imprisonment, which period of imprisonment is wholly suspended for a period of 2 years on condition that the defendant commit no offence punishable by imprisonment during that period. In addition I make a community correction order for a period of 2 years with the condition that during the operative period of that order the defendant perform 98 hours of community service.