Man sent to jail for heinous assault
A DRUNK Townsville man who made unwanted advances towards a woman punched her and bashed her head with a torch will spend the next few months in jail.
Sentenced to 10 months imprisonment in September for the unlawful use of a vehicle, serial car thief Alwyn Steven Grannigan, 21, had been released on parole for 12 days when he ran into fresh trouble.
Police prosecutor Mark Fenlon said at 12.05am on September 18, police were called to a house in Easterbrook Crescent, Kirwan, where they found a “visibly distressed” woman clutching her head in pain.
After officers encountered Grannigan in the backyard, he jumped the back fence and neighbouring fences to escape.
She told police she rejected Grannigan’s advances and asked him to leave, before he followed her into the backyard and punched her multiple times with a closed fist.
Arming himself with a small torch and a pair of scissors, he hit her in the head several times with the torch, causing multiple head lacerations.
They located a blood soaked 10cm torch and a small pair of scissors.
Grannigan appeared from the Townsville Correctional Centre via videolink in the Townsville Magistrates Court on Wednesday, pleading guilty to the charge of assaults occasioning bodily harm while armed.
Mr Fenlon said Grannigan’s criminal history was a “significant issue” in this matter.
Grannigan was on parole at the time of the assault.
He had also been sentenced to six months imprisonment for assault occasioning bodily harm in March 2021 after he punched a woman, 17, in the eye and forehead.
“He doesn’t get what he wants, so he decides he’s going to beat the woman up. Violence against women is something that shouldn’t be tolerated,” Mr Fenlon said.
He regarded an additional 15 months behind bars as a necessary deterrence.
Taking into consideration Grannigan’s young age, early guilty plea, and the need to avoid a “crushing” term of imprisonment, Defence lawyer Andrew Maxwell called for a nine to 12 month term.
Mr Maxwell said Grannigan was intoxicated at the time of his offending, which didn’t excuse the behaviour but put it in context.
“He is fully prepared to admit that he did the wrong thing,” Mr Maxwell said.
Grannigan was trying to “better himself” by undertaking courses in prison, including drug and alcohol education, and intended to relocate to Palm Island after his release, away from bad influences.
Magistrate Richard Lehmann said it was a “serious offence” where it was fortunate that the victim wasn’t more seriously injured.
He said the charge was aggravated by similar offences in Grannigan’s criminal history, and for carrying it out less than two weeks after he was granted parole.
Mr Lehmann sentenced Grannigan to an additional 12 months on his existing sentence, with a parole eligibility date of March 17, 2023, and a conviction recorded.