STATE OF TASMANIA v STEPHEN THOMAS HAY 8 SEPTEMBER 2020
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE BLOW CJ
Mr Hay has pleaded guilty to a charge of aggravated assault. On 13 January 2019 he assaulted his then partner by holding the barrel of a rifle to the side of her head. The complainant ended their relationship as a result of that incident. Mr Hay has also pleaded guilty to five summary offences relating to the same incident. I will deal with them under s 385A of the Criminal Code. Those charges comprise two charges of assault, one charge of destroying property, and two firearms charges.
On the day in question, Mr Hay was 29 years old and his then partner, the complainant, was 18. They were living in a building on a dairy farm where Mr Hay was employed. The couple had been together for about 12 months. Their relationship had been volatile. They argued a lot. Mr Hay often accused the complainant of sexual involvement with other men.
On the day before the assaults, Saturday, 12 January, the complainant went to a rodeo with a female friend. She was wearing shorts and a singlet. Mr Hay unsuccessfully tried to persuade her to dress more conservatively. He told her that he had a gun with two bullets in it and that, if she did anything with anyone else, there was one bullet for her and one bullet for the other person. While she was at the rodeo he sent her a series of text messages motivated by jealousy. She camped overnight at the rodeo venue and returned home at about 8.30am on 13 January. Mr Hay was working in the dairy at that time. The complainant noticed a rifle in a washing basket next to the couple’s bed, and removed two bullets from it. She hid the bullets and went to sleep.
A couple of hours later she woke up as Mr Hay was opening the bedroom door. He told her to get out of bed and assaulted her by hitting her to the head with the back of his hand. She refused to get up. Mr Hay picked up her phone and threw it at her, pulled the bedding off her, threw it outside, returned with a pot of cold water, and assaulted her by pouring water over her head. He told her that he had photos of her with other men. He started going through her phone messages. She told him that it was all in his head, and started to pack her bags to leave. He picked up the rifle, stood in front of her, and said words to the effect of, “I told you I would shoot you if you slept with other guys.” She said that she did not. He swore at her and said that she did. He jammed the rifle barrel along her cheek and into her ear. The violence ceased at that stage. The complainant started crying. She packed up, left him, and went to a police station. As she was leaving, Mr Hay smashed the side mirror of her car by punching it.
Mr Hay was arrested that afternoon. He co-operated with the police. He took part in an interview in which he made some admissions, but not full admissions. He said that he hit the complainant to the side of the head with the gun barrel, leaving a mark on her left ear, but did not admit having threatened to shoot her. He told the police that he kept his ammunition in a cupboard.
In more detail, the five summary charges relate to the following:
- The assault when Mr Hay hit the complainant to the head with the back of his hand.
- The assault when he threw cold water over her.
- The destruction of the mirror of her car.
- Failing to comply with prescribed storage requirements in respect of the rifle.
- Failing to comply with prescribed storage requirements in respect of his ammunition.
The assault with the rifle caused a small cut to the complainant’s ear. She has since suffered from depression, anxiety, panic attacks, reduced self-confidence, and sleeplessness. She takes medication for her psychological symptoms and regularly sees a counsellor.
Mr Hay is now 31 years old. He has some convictions for driving offences, but has no prior convictions for offences involving violence. He lives with his parents. He is single, but has a child from a previous relationship. That child spends alternate weekends and some of her school holidays with him. He has been in stable employment ever since completing year 10. He is highly regarded by his employer. In a pre-sentence report, a probation officer has reported that he reduced his alcohol consumption after the incident in question, acknowledging that excessive alcohol consumption contributed to his offending behaviour. Apparently he reduced his drinking, went back to his family home, and obtained support from a general practitioner in order to avoid a repetition of his violent behaviour.
The Crown was advised around the middle of last year that Mr Hay was willing to plead guilty. However the particulars of his assault with the rifle were disputed. He asserted that the rifle had not been loaded, that he did not threaten to shoot the complainant, and that he committed the assault by striking her to the side of the head with the end of the barrel, not by pushing the barrel up the side of her face. Because of the factual dispute, it was necessary for both the complainant and Mr Hay to give evidence. I was satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the complainant’s version of events was true. It counts in Mr Hay’s favour that he pleaded guilty, and that the cost and inconvenience of a full-scale trial were avoided, but his plea of guilty would have carried much greater weight if it had not been necessary for the complainant to attend court and be subjected to cross-examination.
This was a very serious assault. It was motivated by irrational jealousy. Mr Hay did not know that the complainant had removed the bullets from the rifle. The complainant was in a very vulnerable position. The psychological consequences could have been far worse. This is a serious case of domestic violence.
However, because of Mr Hay’s lack of relevant prior convictions, his good employment record, and the steps that he has taken to avoid a repetition of such terrible behaviour, I do not think it is necessary to send him to prison. Instead I will impose a wholly suspended sentence of imprisonment, require him to perform some community service, and require him to submit to the supervision of a probation officer for 12 months.
Stephen Thomas Hay, I convict you and sentence to 12 months’ imprisonment, wholly suspended on conditions that (a) you are not to commit any offence punishable by imprisonment for a period of 18 months; and (b) you are to perform 160 hours’ community service within the next 30 months. I make a community correction order, to operate for 12 months from today, with special conditions that (a) during that period you must be subject to the supervision of a probation officer as required by the probation officer; and (b) you must attend, participate in, and complete the EQUIPS Domestic Abuse Program as directed by a probation officer. I direct that the crime of aggravated assault, the other two assaults, and the offence of destroying property, be recorded on your criminal record as family violence offences.