A 40-year-old man who received a 12-month home detention order after driving at patrons of the Exeter Hotel and then going back six months later has received a chance to stay out of jail.
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Michael Kevin Davis received home detention in the Supreme Court of Tasmania after pleading guilty to dangerous driving on June 4, 2022.
In February 2023, he revisited the hotel and, as a result of an incident, pleaded guilty to two counts of common assault: a count of threatening a police officer, a count of assaulting a police officer and a count of resisting a police officer.
Davis was due for sentence on Friday.
The Launceston Magistrates Court heard in September that two men were at the Exeter Hotel in February 2023 when Davis turned up and started abusing people.
"He said, 'We're going to the Supreme Court, and all you c---s are going to pay," the court heard.
Davis was chest to chest with one man when he tried to bite him on the face and then slapped him.
He then pushed his head against a patron's head, pulled an unopened stubby from his pocket, and hit him to the head with it.
Police arrested Davis for assault and asked him if he had anything in his pocket.
"Yeah, a gun," Davis replied.
Police said Davis resisted arrest by pulling his arms away from police and struggled.
The court heard It took police two to three minutes to cuff Davis.
Davis was agitated and started banging his head on the ground, yelling to an officer," F--- off! I know where you live," and "I'm going to rip your ranger throat out" to another officer.
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However, in sentencing, magistrate Sharon Cure said that Davis had been on a home detention order for five to six weeks when he pleaded guilty.
"He didn't start well, but he's improved, I'm told," she said.
Ms Cure said she would allow him to comply with the order made by Justice Gregory Geason.
"If I don't defer sentence and put him in jail, I will be ignoring Justice Geason's approach," Ms Cure said.
She told defence lawyer James Kitto: "He gets a chance," and then addressed Davis directly, saying, "You need to lift your game".
Ms Cure said she would defer sentencing until February 27 2024, to see how Davis was faring on the order.
"Then I will consider a period of suspended imprisonment," she said.
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Ms Cure said anybody who thought home detention orders were a soft option should be corrected but said it was better than going to prison.
"It's a damn sight better option than going to prison," Davis said.
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Nick Clark
I am the Supreme and Magistrates Court reporter for the Examiner for the past 18 months. My journalism career has clicked over 30 years and encompasses four different spells at Tasmanian newspapers.
I am the Supreme and Magistrates Court reporter for the Examiner for the past 18 months. My journalism career has clicked over 30 years and encompasses four different spells at Tasmanian newspapers.
