Leeton Jackson sentenced for assault after chasing boys from Flinders street

Leeton William Jackson, 25, was charged with common assault and intimidation after setting on the boys, aged 13, 15 and 15.

On Tuesday Wollongong Local Court heard Jackson was returning to his Tabourie Close, Flinders home in a taxi at about 2.40am on April 21 when he became enraged by the sight of the teens.

He got out of the taxi and said "why are you walking down my street? I've got blades on me, let's go", causing the boys to run.

Jackson gave chase and caught up to one of the boys, who had become separated from his friends after crossing Wattle Road.

The boy came to a stop on some sporting fields and accepted Jackson's offer of a cigarette, later telling police he thought this would ease the situation.

But once close, Jackson grabbed the boy, causing him to slide backwards out of his jacket to escape. The boy ran and reunited with his friends, before the trio called police.

Jackson's mother and sister soon also called police, reporting Jackson had become verbally and physically aggressive once back on Tabourie Close.

Detectives were recalled to duty that morning as a result of the incident.

CCTV footage and audio from the earlier taxi ride showed Jackson spotting the boys and telling the driver, "pull over, pull over, pull over. These little c--- suckers. I'll punch the c--- out of all these little dogs out here".

On Tuesday Jackson's lawyer told Wollongong Local Court he had experienced multiple personal tragedies in the lead-up to the altercation.

He had since become focused on being a good role model, his lawyer said.

The court heard he assumed the boys were responsible for recent thefts in the street.

But Magistrate Mark Douglass said Jackson had no reason to believe the boys were up to no good.

"It starts off with you thinking you're doing something positive ... in fact you've taken the law into your own hands," he said.

"These matters are serious. There's physical contact between you and someone who's relatively young. The impact on that particular person would be significant.

"There's no evidence that they did anything wrong other than walk down the street."

Jackson was sentenced to a 12-month community corrections order, and ordered to perform 75 hours of community service.