Magistrate Paul Heaney sentenced the man to 18 months jail in March after he pleaded guilty to unlawful wounding. The individual then had his sentence reduced by Supreme Court Justice Michael Murray to a suspended sentenced and he was released from jail after serving three months jail time after Justice Murray allowed his appeal.
Justice McLure said today in a written statement that usually using a glass in an attack did not warrant jail time, but given the frequency with which glassing attacks are occurring in WA that "increased weight could be given to the need of general deterrence".
Justice McLure also said that due to "the many mitigatory factors in this case, a term of immediate imprisonment is the only appropriate sentencing option."
The argument by the DPP that the suspended sentence was grossly inadequate for such a serious crime and a crime which most of the WA community would find abhorrent was upheld by the Court of Appeals and the although the initial sentence of 18 months was reduced to 15 months, there is a certain sense of comfort that comes for magistrates who are due to sentence in trials like this one.
What this means most importantly for WA is that crimes like this are not going unnoticed, or unpunished. The individual convicted initially had his sentence reduced because of his "personal circumstances" and the fact that rehabilitation was likely but as most people would probably agree having a glass shoved in your face should never be the means by which someone wins an argument.
Yes alcohol was a factor in this case, as it is in almost all "glassing" incidents, which seem to be the crime du jour for WA, but the fact is the law is created to separate those who can do the right thing and those who chose not too. I certainly feel safer knowing that harsh sentences are going to be given to those who chose to pick up a glass and shove it into someone's face, drunk or not, and even though I can see in some circumstances where drunken arguments can be a simply misunderstanding, I think it takes a lot of gall to partake in such an inherently violent act.
What confuses me most about how these types of incidents keep occurring is the sheer fact that glasses are still handed out at venues which serve alcohol. Surely the easiest way to stop "glassings" is to take away the glass? Perhaps I'm missing a vital point here but I cannot imagine that drunken violence is really going to stop any time soon when drinking and getting drunk is such an integral part of Australian culture, so I can't for any reason see how or why we are happy to hand over what is fast becoming a life threatening weapon to people who can't keep it to themselves. I'm more than happy to surrender having my pints in a glass for a plastic cup if it means me or my friends who are having a drink at the pub aren't going to have to have reconstructive surgery on our faces because we looked the wrong way at the bloke at the bar.
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