Glenn Connors convicted for reckless wounding in Griffith Local Court

Glenn Connors, 28, was sentenced in Griffith Local Court on the charges of reckless wounding and larceny on June 8.

Documents tendered to the court say the victim was at the Darlington Point Bowling Club with friends at the same time as Connors on June 26, 2022.

A witness said the the victim drank five cans of rum while Connors had six to seven beers.

At 8.40pm Connors asked for "the cheapest long neck of beer", a bottle of Great Northern, before purchasing it and leaving the premises. The victim and his friends collected their own takeaway long necks before leaving a little later.

The court heard the victim saw Connors outside the venue smoking and as the group headed towards a house, Connors engaged the victim in conversation as they walked.

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The group walked across a vacant lot between Demamiel Street and Hay Road with the victim walking on the footpath and Connors behind him.

Connors then hit the victim with his long neck in his right hand on the left hand side of the victim's head.

The victim reported feeling the bottle break on his head, and was knocked to the ground. As he got up he saw Connors 'shaping up', before the victim tripped over and then stood up again.

Connors picked up the victim's bag of long necks and swung it at the victim, but missed and fled.

The victim was taken to Griffith Base Hospital, and was left with a superficial scar on his head.

Later that night the bar supervisor saw a post on social media from Connors which said he wouldn't be active for a while. In a series of text messages between them, Connors admitted to buying the cheapest long neck to assault someone he alleged had assaulted his daughter.

On June 30 last year, Connors was arrested by police and had been in custody ever since, after being refused bail.

Connors' solicitor David Davidge conceded it was a "nasty assault" in the "cold light of day".

Mr Davidge told the court Connors had grown up with violence a common occurrence in the home, which had pre-disposed him to using it as an adult.

He said Connors had a "complex relationship" with alcohol which further exacerbated a willingness to offer violence when confronted with difficult or stressful situations.

Mr Davidge said at 28-years-old Connors had already spent time in custody and offered that a period of long supervision would allow him to find support for anger management and his alcohol consumption.

Mr Davidge told the court there were several pro-social factors at play for Connors, who had been employed previously and would seek employment again.

Solicitor for the Director of Public Prosecutions Jessica Dawson told the court the offence of reckless wounding was in the middle of the range of seriousness, was pre-meditated and left the victim with a three to four centimetre laceration to the head.

Ms Dawson told the court the use of a long neck beer bottle instead of a fist represented a "significant degree of violence". She argued the threshold for imprisonment had been crossed.

She said the fact Connors asked for the cheapest long neck bottle showed he had no intention of drinking it.

"It's an offence of alcohol-fueled violence," Ms Dawson said.

Magistrate Trevor Khan described it as a "cowardly attack" and acknowledged while "brutal" it was only one blow.

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While the text message exchange suggested that Connors called it revenge for an alleged assault on his daughter, Mr Khan said there was "no evidence before court that the victim had done anything to a child at all".

Mr Khan said he wasn't persuaded by Mr Davidge's submissions about a difficult upbringing for Connors, and pointed to his criminal record which showed a number of offences.

"It was a violent assault on a victim who had no chance to respond. A violent assault which was planned," he said.

Mr Khan took into account Connors early guilty plea and the fact he had been in jail since June 30, 2022.

For the charge of reckless wounding he was sentenced to 22 months in jail, with a non-parole period of 16 months. For the charge of larceny he will serve a supervised community corrections order for two years dating from June 8, 2023.

Connors will be eligible for parole on October 29.

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