$2500 fine for assault outside city nightclub

A FATHER who arrived at the St James Nightclub in Geelong to take his intoxicated and hotheaded son home was assaulted by another clubgoer.

Lachlan McCol faced Geelong Magistrates Court and pleaded guilty to assaulting a man who was trying to prevent his son from escalating any violence.

The court heard the father arrived at the James St nightclub after an alleged altercation between his son and one of the club’s security guards that started with the son throwing a street sign at the other man.

It was alleged the son fled after he threw the sign, but a member of the public impeded him so the security guard could catch up.

Once he did, the guard allegedly punched him until he lost consciousness.

About 12 minutes later, the son was seen standing up and making his way back to the club to verbally abuse the security guard.

At this point, McCol exited the nightclub and joined the argument.

The son knocked over a rope barrier and spat at McCol, who retaliated by chasing the son and a physical altercation occurred.

The father arrived and forced his son into the front passenger seat of the car, but the son continued to hurl verbal abuse through the open window.

He escaped the vehicle as his father was trying to leave, prompting McCol to “sprint from outside the club” and make a beeline for the two men.

The accused threw punches at the father and, although the son attempted to remove him, members of the public pulled the son off.

McCol continued the assault by pushing the father up against his car multiple times. At some point, he stood over the father and verbally abused him.

His lawyer said there was some community concern about “young drunk men on the street coming out of nightclubs”.

“This matter bears all the hallmarks of that,” he said.

McCol’s lawyer said that in the moments before his violent outburst, something had been thrown at him and he responded “stupidly”.

“He understands his response was not good and he certainly understands the consequences that flowed from that and accepts some blame lays with him,” he said.

Magistrate John Lesser said there were “very strong reasons why the court should denounce that sort of behaviour in public places”.

But Mr Lesser took into account McCol’s early guilty plea and the counselling he voluntarily sought after the nightclub incident.

McCol was convicted and fined $2500.