A man who punched a police sergeant in the face while intoxicated has escaped a conviction.
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The man, who The Courier has chosen not to name as he was not convicted, pleaded guilty to the charges at the Ballarat Magistrates' Court on Thursday.
The police prosecutor told the court several police members were walking from Bacchus Marsh Police station along Main Street to attend a brawl last June.
When they reached the front of the pub, the accused - who had been leaning across the front fence talking to people - moved into the path of the police and "deliberately" bumped into a sergeant's shoulder.
The sergeant directed him to move on and warned him that if he didn't he would be arrested for being drunk in a public place.
The accused was observed to be unsteady on his feet and was slurring his words
- Police prosecutor
"The accused was observed to be unsteady on his feet and was slurring his words," the court heard.
When another police officer told the accused to move on and pushed him out of the way, the accused fell to the ground yet insisted he was not drunk and demanded police breath test him.
He then punched the sergeant in the head, next to his left eye, with a closed fist before running across the street.
Police pursued him on foot and caught up to him when he stumbled and fell to the ground.
He refused to tell police his name, despite being asked multiple times, and resisted being handcuffed.
The court was told that while still on the ground he lashed out at police with his feet, kicking both police officers.
When he was arrested he was transferred to Ballarat Police Station where he was interviewed by police who were not involved in the incident.
The court was told he did not deny the allegations during the interview and when asked why he assaulted police, refused to tell his name and why he resisted arrest he said he had "had too much to drink".
Representing himself at the court, the man pleaded guilty to the charges.
The prosecutor said the man was on bail for indictable offences at the time, which involved breaking a window after he'd "had too much to drink".
The man, now aged 19, told Magistrate Letizia Torres that he had not drunk alcohol since he punched the officer and had sought mental health treatment, including anger management and alcohol counselling.
He told the court that at the time of the offending he "was couch surfing, didn't have a home or work" and was drinking "really cheap alcohol" and didn't remember the incident.
I was really unstable and that's why I turned to alcohol to distract me from reality
- The accused
"I was really unstable and that's why I turned to alcohol to distract me from reality," he said.
He submitted he now lived with his girlfriend and had been working for about a year.
"I'm strong now and go to work every day. I surround myself with better people and am in a much better mindset now that I'm stable and earning money."
Ms Torres noted that what he did was "really awful" and said it was "serious offending".
"These men were just trying to do their job," she told him, adding that she hoped he felt a level of shame for his actions.
"If you drink excessively you might do things you regret which can hurt other people. You have control over how much you drink," Ms Torres said.
But she noted he was aged 18 at the time of the offending so his "rehabilitation was really important".
"It seems as though you've taken steps of your own accord to sort out your issues. You went to a doctor, engaged a psychologist, stopped drinking and now have a job and a home.
"That is all really positive and because of your age it makes a lot of impact in terms of sentencing. It would be different if you were older."
She decided not to record a conviction due to his age, in the hope it was the last time he appeared before a court.
In the context of him being charged with another incident when he was intoxicated not long before, she decided to impose a fine to "show the behaviour is not acceptable".
He was fined $850.
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