A man who went on an hour-long knife rampage through a Launceston shopping precinct, slashing car tyres and terrifying shoppers, has been jailed.
Patrick David Johnston, 33, pleaded guilty to being unlawfully armed in public, six counts of destroying property and one count of secreting himself within the curtilage of a dwelling.
The Supreme Court of Tasmania last month heard Johnston roamed the Mowbray business centre for about an hour just after midday on February 7.
He used a knife to stab the tyres of six parked cars. Many people saw him and multiple calls were made to police.
Johnston confronted several members of the public. He pointed at one female driver and ran his thumb across his throat.
There was a child in one of the cars he approached.
He asked another woman “what the f–k do you want” as she saw him with the knife, the court heard. She ran inside her workplace and told staff to lock the doors.
Police arrested Johnston after a report he was in Joffre Street with a large knife. He tried to hide in the yard of a nearby house.
The court heard Johnston has schizophrenia but does not accept the diagnosis. Alcohol abuse also played a significant part.
Justice Robert Pearce said Johnston had a history of similar knife offences and had been “treated leniently” by magistrates in the past.
“This pattern of offences indicates clearly that specific deterrence and, even more importantly, protection of the public are now important considerations,” Pearce said.
Johnston was sentenced to 10 months in prison from April 24, with six months suspended for 18 months.
He will also be subject to an 18-month community correction order requiring drug, alcohol and psychiatric treatment.
The court heard Johnston had “no means of compensating” the owners of the six damaged cars.
