A violent dispute on Hobart’s eastern shore over a second-hand outdoor chair has resulted in a young man being sentenced to close to 100 hours of community service.
20-year-old Jordan Barry Chisholm attacked 39-year-old Yuan Yao over the belief that he and his partner had stolen a chair that had been ‘left outside for waste collection’ from a Bellerive lawn in February.
Chisholm, who was intoxicated at the time, approached Yao with a group of 6-7 people and demanded to know where the chair had come from.
When Yao refused to tell him, Chisholm accused Yao of stealing the chair and kicked his left hand.
At first, the group walked away after a female member apologised for Chisholm’s behaviour.
However, Chisholm and another male from the group continued to “yell and shout” at Yao, forcing him to call the police.
Chisholm then walked back to Yao and attempted to snatch his phone before punching him, causing his prescription glasses to break and him to fall to the ground.
“As [Yao] was on the ground, [Chisholm] punched him to the back of the head a number of times,” Justice Estcourt said in his passing comments on the sentence.
Chisholm was pulled away twice, both times approaching Yao again and continuing to punch him.
“The last of these punches made contact with the [Yao’s] left eye and the force caused him to fall to the ground again in pain.”
Yao suffered severe injuries to his left eye, including fractures and herniation of the eye muscle, requiring surgical repair and he also faces a long-term risk of retinal detachment and glaucoma.
Reading a victim impact statement, Justice Estcourt said the assault has had severe physical, emotional and financial consequences for Yao.
His left eye now drifts outward, he has double vision and is having to wait six months “to see if things settle” so he can get new glasses.
“He does not feel like the person he used to be, and this makes him feel angry, anxious and depressed,” Justice Estcourt said, which is affecting both his job and daily life.
Now 21-years-old, employed as a full-time plasterer and living at home with his parents, Justice Estcourt believed Chisholm was “uncharacteristically violent” towards Yao due to his intoxication at the time.
Justice Estcourt sentenced Chisholm to 9 months in prison, wholly suspended for 2 years, and 98 hours of community service.
Chisholm has also previously paid $1,201.00 in compensation to the court.
