A man will spend at least nine months behind bars over an “appalling” neighbourhood brawl caught on camera at Albion Park.
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The man clutched a walking stick in one hand and a knife in the other as he emerged from his single-storey unit, shirtless and limping, to confront neighbours who yelled, flashed their buttocks and hurled objects at his home the evening of December 28.
He was followed by his 14-year-old son, who is seen in amateur video bounding into the fray, proffering more stick weapons to his father as the confrontation grows increasingly heated.
Hockey sticks, chairs, brooms, drinks and a knife are thrown into the melee as the man joins a tug-of-war and has a stick brought down hard on his head. He deals numerous blows to the other parties before eventually returning to his home.
The encounter was captured on camera by a neighbour, who contacted police.
On Thursday Wollongong Local Court heard the man’s limp was the result of his feet being run over by a car on Christmas Eve.
Magistrate Michael Stoddart jailed him for 12 months, with a non-parole period of nine months, after noting his history of violent offences and the seriousness of the offence.
“You went way over the top … especially when your son was there,” he said.
The man opted to appeal the severity of the sentence and returned to court Thursday afternoon, seeking release on bail as he awaits the outcome of that court action.
The man’s lawyer said he needed his freedom in order to care for his son. Magistrate Stoddart did not agree.
“It was appalling conduct. Now he needs to care for his son?” he said.
“There didn’t seem to be much caring going on as far as what I saw going on on the film.”
The court heard the man had since moved out of the neighbourhood and would have no further contact with his December adversaries.
Magistrate Stoddart refused bail, noting the high likelihood the man will be jailed, post-appeal.
The matter returns to Wollongong District Court May 28.