A 51-year-old Collie man was fined $2500 after pleading guilty to eight offences in the Collie Magistrates Court last week.
The court heard Maitland James Anderson had committed the offences, which included three disorderly conduct charges, over the space of four weeks in October and November.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Jo Morrissey told the court one of the incidents took place on October 14, where Anderson assaulted a 31-year-old man in an unprovoked attack.
The court heard Anderson walked up behind the victim, who was leaning into his car to grab his wallet, and pushed him from behind, causing the man to hit the steering wheel and suffer a rib injury.
Sergeant Morrissey said Anderson and the victim were not known to each other.
She also said Anderson was ‘screaming and shouting very inappropriate comments’ in the street when police arrived at the scene, and continued the disorderly behaviour once taken to the police lock-up.
Two days later, he was charged again with disorderly conduct when he made inappropriate comments to staff at the Collie River Valley Medical Centre.
Sergeant Morrissey said when police arrived, Anderson refused to get into the police car and a subsequent search turned up $30 worth of items stolen from Red Dot.
As a result of those two incidents, Anderson was charged with three disorderly conduct offences, one charge of obstructing police, one charge of stealing and one charge of assault.
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In addition, he was charged with breaching a police order which prohibited him from attending a particular address on November 9 and breaching his bail conditions on November 15, which had resulted him being taken into custody at Bunbury Regional Prison.
Anderson’s Aboriginal Legal Service lawyer Michelle Huber told the court Anderson was a ‘chronic alcoholic’ in part due to the death of his daughter and had ‘little to no recollection’ of the incidents, although he accepted they ‘must have happened’.
Ms Huber also said Anderson had mistaken his bail conditions for a police order, which he believed had expired, leading to the breach.
Magistrate Brian Mahon imposed fines on Anderson and urged him to get his drinking under control.
Anderson received a $200 fine for the stealing offence, a $1000 global fine for three disorderly conduct charges, a $500 global fine for the breaches of bail and the police order.
He was also ordered to pay an $800 fine as compensation to the victim of the assault as well as $30 compensation to Red Dot, along with $430 in court costs.
