A bitter feud between two men blew up into hit run in 2019 which could have been fatal, the Supreme Court in Launceston heard on Thursday.
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Shane Christopher Blair, 40, of Waverley pleaded guilty to one count of assault by running into Barry Stewart Foon with the bullbar of his motor vehicle on Boxing Day 2019.
Crown prosecutor Claire Darvell said the men met through an ex-partner of Mr Blair and had some incidents in preceding months including scratching of a car with a key and ramming into the back of a vehicle.
Much of the incident was caught on Coles Express CCTV and was played to the court.
Mr Blair bought petrol at 12.45pm at Coles Express in Hoblers Bridge Rd when Mr Foon spotted him.
He reversed his car quickly and stopped in Olive St and walked across the road and began abusing Mr Blair who was seated in his vehicle.
He pulled the windshield off the driver's side of Mr Blair's vehicle and dumped it on the rear seat of the vehicle. He yelled abuse and waved his fists at Mr Blair.
Mr Foon walked back to his car and Mr Blair turned left to go to the Coles Supermarket but changed his mind and did a u-turn and headed back towards Mr Foon who was on a grassed area on the eastern side of Olive St.
"The accused drove over the kerb onto the grassed area striking Mr Foon with the bullbar," Ms Darvell said.
"The complainant jumped to try and avoid the vehicle, the impact threw him into the air and he landed on the bonnet."
"The accused turned left into Hoblers Bridge Rd."
She said Mr Foon was taken to the Launceston General Hospital. His injuries included right hip pain, abrasions to the left forearm, a fractured pelvis and pubic bone.
In an interview with police Mr Blair said he had reached second gear by the time he hit the complainant.
No victim impact statement was submitted.
Defence counsel Lucy Flanagan said that her client had pleaded guilty on the basis that he had intentionally struck Mr Foon with his vehicle.
She said the complainant was the aggressor who had waved his arms and shaken his fist.
"Provocation is a relevant factor," she said.
She said he had panicked and turned for home after the incident but rang police when he arrived.
Ms Flanagan submitted that a sentence short of actual imprisonment was possible in the case.
"It is an isolated incident and the circumstances won't be repeated," she said.
Justice Michael Brett commented that it was a serious criminal act to drive a vehicle at someone and then leave the scene.
"It could have killed him," he said. He postponed sentencing until April 14 at 4.15.