Man in strife over kid slap

A TOWNSVILLE father who slapped an innocent child so hard they were almost knocked off their feet has been condemned for his actions.

The child, who had been waiting for a pizza outside of a Domino’s, was forced to take shelter inside the restaurant after they were slapped in the face by Richard Sylvester Foran.

Foran, 34, pleaded guilty in Townsville Magistrates Court to a charge of common assault over the April 24 attack.

The court heard that at 6.20pm at Stocklands North Shore, the 14-year-old boy was waiting with his friends for a pizza outside the restaurant, when a shirtless Foran drove up and parked his car.

Foran got out and then hit the boy with an open hand, smacking the side of his face and almost knocking him off his feet.

The next day, the boy and his father reported the assault.

Police prosecutor Sergeant John Moran told the court that when officers spoke with Foran, he told them he had thought the boy had stolen his own son’s bike earlier that day.

The incident was caught on CCTV, with police identifying Foran by his tattoos.

Sergeant Moran said Foran had a history of drug offending. “He has gone up and … slapped a child hard on the face, to the point he knocked him off balance, the child retreated to Domino’s,” Sergeant Moran said.

“Whether that was a misunderstanding on Mr Foran’s behalf makes little difference in the prosecution’s submission,

“He embarked on the assault of a 14-year-old in a public place as a grown man, and this court speaking for the community have rightly condemned that assault, and a sentence of imprisonment is clearly within this court’s discretion.” The court heard the child did not suffer injuries in the assault.

Foran’s lawyer, Phil Rennick, told the court his client had now been sober for 10 years, and said Foran’s “frustration” had been borne out of Townsville’s known problems with crime, adding his client had “overreacted”.

Magistrate Viviana Keegan asked Foran how he would feel if a stranger had assaulted his son. “The community act through this court and this type of violence is not acceptable, ever,” Ms Keegan said.

Foran was sentenced to six months’ jail, wholly suspended for 18 months.