STATE OF TASMANIA v ANTHONY CRAIG CLIFFORD 26 FEBRUARY 2025
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE PORTER AJ
Anthony Clifford, the defendant, pleaded guilty on complaint to one count of assault and appears in this Court for sentence. I am now also dealing with his plea of guilty to a summary offence of unlawfully possessing a dangerous article in a public place. Relevant events took place on 30 May 2024 at about 8:45pm. The complainant in the assault matter is Avtar Saini whose partner is an owner of a restaurant in the Elizabeth Street Mall. He works there as a chef. The defendant was with four others in the Mall. Others in the group were doing various disorderly things such as pushing over outdoor settings and plants, picking up and throwing various items. Some of these items belonged to the restaurant. As the group walked away, the complainant came into the Mall, saw the various items strewn about, walked towards the group and called for them to pick up the restaurant property. The group, including the defendant, turned around and walked towards the complainant. The female member of the group stood directly in front of him and yelled abuse. The defendant stood behind and watched. As the complainant attempted to walk away, the female hit him to the face. He attempted to strike back but fell to the ground. As he got to his feet, the defendant ran towards him and pushed in the chest. A scuffle ensued and the other group members crowded in. By this time the complainant’s partner had arrived and she attempted to intervene. However, as the complainant looked at one member of the group, the defendant struck him to the face with a closed fist which caused the complainant to reel backwards several metres. He and his partner attempted to walk away from the group, but the defendant again went up to him and, again while the complainant was not looking in his direction, hit him to the face with a closed fist. A member of the public became involved and walked with the complainant and his partner away from the group. The group followed, the defendant among them. More disorderly conduct occurred and as the couple were about to enter their restaurant, the defendant walked up to the complainant, held a fist to his face and threatened to strike him again. I do not understand the alleged assault to include the first push to the chest, or the threat to strike, but it is confined to the two incidents of punching the complainant to the face. The incident was captured on CCTV and on 23 June 2024, the defendant was arrested. Among the property found on him was a kitchen knife and a box cutter blade. Those items are the subject of the summary charge. When interviewed, the defendant said he was homeless at the time of the assault and was living in the Mall; the female group member had started things. He admitted hitting the complainant with a closed fist with the blow hitting him in the teeth. He said that he felt sorry for the complainant but he should have left it as it was none of his business to get involved. He said that he would not stand to see a woman hit and the complainant had no right to hit her. He acted in protection of her. He said that he felt terrible knowing the complainant had lost teeth, and he was disgusted with himself and remorseful. At the end of the interview he was remanded in custody to appear in Court and has been in custody since that time. The plea of guilty to the assault on the complaint was made on 18 October 2024.
As a result of the blows, the complainant has lost three front teeth and suffered an abrasion to the inside of his upper lip. A fourth tooth was loose, but had to be later removed. He has since undergone surgery to place four dental implants and to repair associated ligament damage. He will require further dental surgery and treatment. He is also receiving treatment for migraines and depression resulting from the crime. I have a victim impact statement from Mr Saini dated 7 January 2025. He describes having to be referred to the surgeon, with one surgery being done in early June 2024, and with multiple follow-ups and further expected surgery about now. He is out-of-pocket due to the doctor’s appointments and has had to take time off work. He says he now does not want to live or work in Tasmania and he has been talking to his partner about moving interstate. He has been struggling with his mental health and he is scared to go out in public. He has lost confidence due to the ongoing issues with his front teeth.
The defendant is now 43 years old. He does have a recorded history of offending. He was dealt with without conviction for two assaults in 2006 and then convicted of assault in February 2011. At that time he was also dealt with two charges of a assaulting police officer and resisting a police officer for which was sentenced to six weeks imprisonment wholly suspended on conditions. Otherwise, he has some convictions for property matters, firearm offences and driving matters. There does not seem to be anything dysfunctional in his upbringing, apart from some depression in early adult life. He was raised in a rural area in southern Tasmania. He describes his father as a particularly strong mentor for him. He left school after grade 10 and has a strong work history, working in many different industries, primarily building and construction but more recently in retail in an antiques store. He has three children aged 18, 13 and 11. The youngest child has lived with him for a time following intervention from the authorities. They were both living with the defendant’s mother until she died in 2022, his father having died much earlier. They then moved from a rural area and were in a rental property in Hobart for about three years before rental increases saw the defendant unable to maintain it. He lost his home and his son went to live with a friend. The defendant became homeless. On the particular night he had been to a food van and met up with a number of others. He vaguely knew the woman who started the confrontation. He said he had been strictly raised with a good moral sense and was strongly averse to violence; in particular towards women. He reacted to the female being involved in the way she was. He was not involved at the start of the incident but intervened in some sort of misguided attempt to protect her. Of course, it needs to be noted that Mr Saini did not actually hit the woman but attempted to do so in response to being hit by her. The defendant was not affected by drugs or alcohol at the time. Since he has been in goal, he has had a lot of time to reflect on his behaviour. He feels quick terrible about what he did. He understands the extent of victim’s injuries from the photos and descriptions. He was remorseful from a very early stage and remains so. When his freedom is available to him he wants to return to work where he was. Apparently, the Salvation Army is available to assist him to reintegrate and to find accommodation. Ultimately, he would like to complete his qualifications in carpentry and construction. I note he has filed a written statement setting out his personal circumstances and why he became involved. In that statement, he says that every night he has prayed for forgiveness and wished he had the chance that the plaintiff know how truly sorry he is. I accept that the defendant is truly remorseful.
Mr Clifford, I have set out the facts of the matter and your personal circumstances. All violence of course is unacceptable. As I think you understand, you had no right to intervene when this man was already under attack for trying to restore order to their property which, in effect, had been vandalised. You are aware of the physical and emotional injuries you have caused. Mr Saini is likely to suffer the affect of your assault for a very long time. I take into account the unfortunate circumstances in which you were at the time and your relatively early plea of guilty in the lower court. You struck two blows, separated by a very short period of time, but both when Mr Saini was looking away. With the injuries, that makes this a serious case of assault and warrants a lengthy term of imprisonment. You have an aged record of violence but nothing recorded for a lengthy period of time. I consider you have reasonable prospects of rehabilitation. Hopefully you can find accommodation and work. I have come to the view that the period of time that you have already spent in custody is sufficient, but there should be a longer sentence to mark the seriousness of your offending and provide some incentive not to reoffend. You are convicted of all matters and sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment to commence on 24 June 2024, the execution of the balance of that term from today is suspended on condition you commit no offence punishable by imprisonment for a period of two years. If you commit any offence which can attract imprisonment, and that literally means of any type, you can be brought back to this Court and a judge must order you serve the balance unless it is unjust.