A 26-year-old man has been convicted of assault after a 12-year-old boy living in a small town outside of Griffith came to class with bruises, which according to the boy came at the hands of his mother’s new boyfriend.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The 12-year-old was assaulted by his mother’s boyfriend on March 27 in the kitchen of his home as he prepared for the school day, though police and witnesses disagreed on the extent of the assault.
Nonetheless he was convicted ex parte of common assault, domestic violence related, in Griffith Local Court on Wednesday, after admitting to police he had laid his hands on the boy without his consent.
As the man was not the boy’s biological father, police said it was their opinion it was inappropriate for him to lawfully chastise him.
He received a $500 fine.
The 26-year-old man had been seeing his victim’s mother for five or six months, and living in their home for two months.
On the morning of the assault the victim and his mother were in the kitchen getting ready for school when the pair began to argue.
A friend of the mother’s was also in the kitchen at the time.
According to police facts the victim was misbehaving by throwing around a bottle of cordial and being disrespectful towards his mother “in the manner that a child of his age would.”
The 12-year-old told police his mother’s boyfriend came out of the bedroom, grabbing him by the shirt, picking him up and body slamming him to the floor.
The boy says he was then slapped in the face and punched in the leg while the man yelled at him about being disrespectful to his mother.
All the while he says his mother was yelling at her boyfriend to stop.
After the boy shared the story with a classmate at school police became involved in the matter.
Officers said the boy was initially only willing to provide them with a verbal statement, noting he appeared “fearful of providing a formal statement because of retribution from the accused or his mother”.
The mother, her boyfriend and her friend confirmed the man had grabbed the boy by his shirt but denied any further violence – dismissing his bruises saying they were from playing with his friends.
“Police are of the opinion that the accused and witness versions are not consistent with the assault that occurred,” the facts read.
“When police completed the recorded statement of the victim it was evident the victim is extremely fearful of the accused, not wishing to return to the family home while he is present.”
