STATE OF TASMANIA v BEAU JOHN HILLS 15 DECEMBER 2022
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE JAGO J
Beau John Hills, you have pleaded guilty to two counts of criminal code assault, contrary to s 184 of the Criminal Code. The charges arise out of an incident that occurred in the Launceston Central Business District in the early hours of the morning on 23 December 2020. You and both complainants had been out celebrating with some work colleagues in separate groups. You all came together in the Charcoal Chicken carpark in Brisbane Street. It seems all of you had been consuming alcohol. You had been consuming alcohol to a significant extent.
Mr Tidey, the complainant in respect of the first count, was known to you. You and he engaged in an argument. He made some inappropriate comments to you. You punched him in the face with a closed fist, using your right hand. The punch caused him to fall backwards into a small garden bed and resulted in him suffering a bleed to his lip.
The complainant in the second count, Mr Vinar, immediately approached you and pushed you away to prevent you going towards Mr Tidey, who was still on the ground. You began acting aggressively, challenging others in the area to a fight. Mr Vinar again approached you, this time with both of his hands raised in an outstretched motion. You took two steps towards him and punched him once to the face. Mr Vinar fell backwards and hit his head on the pavement. He was rendered unconscious and had blood flowing from his head and his ears. You were clearly agitated, yelling to the other men in the area “I’ll knock every one of you cunts”. You were escorted from the scene by another male. Mr Vinar was transported to the Launceston General Hospital. He was treated in the Emergency Department before being transferred to the Royal Hobart Hospital. He had the following injuries: a three centimetre laceration to the back of his head, small abrasions on his nose, a fractured skull, a small volume of bleeding within the brain tissues, bleeding on the surface of the brain and bleeding in the space between the brain and the membrane covering the brain. He was classified as having suffered a mild traumatic brain injury.
You were arrested by police and transported to the Launceston Police Station. Initially, you were too intoxicated to be interviewed. When you were interviewed, you told police you had been drinking since 6 pm. You had a verbal altercation with Mr Tidey. You thought Mr Tidey was going to attack you so you reacted first. You agreed that punching Mr Tidey was not warranted.
In respect to Mr Vinar, you told police you thought he was going to hit you because of the way in which he came towards you, so you punched him to prevent him from doing so. You told police it was never your intention to cause the injuries sustained by Mr Vinar.
The consequences for Mr Vinar have been profound and they are ongoing. I have received a Victim Impact Statement from him. It describes the upset his family experienced with him being hospitalised with serious injuries during the Christmas period. He was bedridden for five to six weeks, unable to feed himself or toilet himself unassisted. He experienced vomiting for a number of weeks and was unable to walk unassisted for approximately six weeks. He experienced severe dizziness, severe headaches and a ringing in his ears for many months. He was unable to be left alone because of the risk of seizures. He lost a considerable amount of body weight. He had communication difficulties and processing difficulties because of the damage to his frontal lobe. He was required to undertake many months of rehabilitation including speech therapy, occupational therapy and treatment for vertigo. He experienced considerable psychological difficulties. These appear to be ongoing. He has been prescribed anti-depressants and remains reliant upon them.
He also has been financially impacted being unable to work for many months. His wife had to stop her full time employment and then was only able to return to part-time employment because of Mr Vinar’s ongoing care requirements. Recreational pursuits he once enjoyed were also lost to him. Because of his inability to return to work, the family business has experienced financial difficulty.
The mild traumatic brain injury led to him having ongoing processing and communication difficulties. His family life has been impacted. He now struggles to read a book to his young son. His senses of smell and taste have been impacted, and his hearing remains distorted. He has difficulty regulating his mood and often finds himself feeling angry, anxious and stressed. There is no question the consequences for Mr Vinar have been just awful and may well be lifelong. It is important to note it is not alleged that you intended or foresaw these consequences, and of course, you will not be sentenced for that. But the fact that the assault was objectively capable of causing such serious injury is itself a factor in the sentencing exercise.
Unfortunately, being violent is not out of character for you. In January 2016, you were sentenced for two counts of common assault. They must have been relatively serious incidents because you received a two month period of imprisonment, wholly suspended by way of sentencing order.
You are now 28 years of age. You were 26 at the time of the incident. You had a difficult upbringing. Your father is described as a violent alcoholic. He and your mother separated when you were seven. Your mother remarried. Your step-father sexually abused three of your siblings. This was obviously an extremely traumatic event within the family unit. Your mother subsequently suffered significant mental health issues and you have supported her through many difficult times. You completed Grade 10 and went on to obtain qualifications as a butcher. You have always held employment in a number of positions. You are currently working as a contractor with a construction company and are well regarded by your employer.
I take into account your plea of guilty. It counts in your favour and will be reflected in the sentence. I am told that you have reflected upon your behaviour on this evening and now accept you completely over-reacted. Your perception as to what was occurring was distorted by your excessive consumption of alcohol. I am told you are remorseful for your behaviour and are genuinely devastated by the extent of the harm you caused to Mr Vinar. I accept that you are sorry for what occurred, but it is of concern that you do not yet appear willing to address what is obviously an underlying issue in terms of excessive alcohol consumption.
I had you assessed as to your suitability for a Home Detention Order. The report I have received notes the following:
“He acknowledged that alcohol has been an issue for him most of his life, which he believes stems from his anger. He self-reported that for the past few months, he has decreased his alcohol consumption and would consume about six to seven beers at home on weekends. In regard to illicit drug use, he claims he started using cannabis ecstasy and then amphetamines in his early 20’s. Mr Hills stated that for the past two years he was using amphetamines daily…… Mr Hills stated after his marriage breakdown, he started addressing his drug use, self-referred to alcohol and drug services and claimed to have stopped using amphetamines on 27/7/2022, but is still using cannabis of a night to assist him to sleep.
This officer contacted Mr Phillips at Alcohol and Drug Services, who confirms that Mr Hills has attended two sessions, one on 27/7/2022 and the second on 25/8/2022 and he has attempted to contact Mr Hills on five occasions since, which has been unsuccessful, and the accused has not returned his calls”.
So whilst it seems you have insight into the impact both your alcohol use and drug use is having upon your life, there seems at this point in time at least, something of an unwillingness to cogently address such issues. I have read and considered the letter authored by you and submitted to the Court on your behalf. Again, it is reflective of remorse and an appreciation that you have a drug and alcohol difficulty and need help in addressing it, but it does not indicate, in my view, that you have yet sought out the assistance necessary. It is now nearly two years since the incident occurred and as far as I can tell, you have attended two appointments with Alcohol and Drug Services. It is appropriate therefore that I approach your claims of reform with a degree of scepticism and caution. Your lack of genuine action in terms of rehabilitative endeavours is concerning and is relevant to my consideration of the weight specific deterrence is to be given in the sentencing process.
Punching another person to the head is inherently dangerous. It is fortunate that Mr Tidey received relatively minor injuries, which resolved without medical intervention. Sadly, the same cannot be said for Mr Vinar. Your single punch has changed his life markedly and perhaps forever. Drunken violence in and around licensed premises and public streets is unfortunately all too common. You and others must understand that even a single punch may, and often does – as has been evidenced here – cause serious, life changing injury and even loss of life. General deterrence and denunciation are prominent factors in this sentencing exercise and, as I have already noted, so too is specific deterrence.
The objective seriousness of you crimes requires the imposition of a sentence of imprisonment. It must be understood that those who engage in criminal violence can expect severe punishment by way of consequence. The sentence must also reflect the grave harm you have caused to Mr Vinar. You are not eligible for a Home Detention Order. The only appropriate sentencing response is a period of imprisonment.
I note you have been assessed as suitable for a Community Corrections Order and I am certainly of the view that you will require some ongoing support. However, because I intend to provide for parole, I will not make a Community Corrections Order. The orders I make are as follows: I will impose a single sentence across both counts. You are convicted of the crimes to which you have pleaded guilty and are sentenced to imprisonment for a period of two years. You will be eligible for parole after you have served one half of that period of imprisonment.