Ex-Tall Black loses bid for discharge without conviction

Former Tall Black Craig Bradshaw was convicted of assaulting a Queenstown bouncer with intent to injure on June 13, 2014. Photo / File

A former Tall Black and Nuggets basketballer's application for a discharge without conviction on an assault charge has been refused.

Judge Bernadette Farnan convicted Craig Robert Bradshaw, 32, of Auckland, on a charge of assaulting Queenstown bouncer Gareth Johnson with intent to injure in the resort on June 13, 2014.

She fined Bradshaw $500 and ordered him to pay his victim $750 reparation for emotional harm when he appeared in the Queenstown District Court yesterday.

Judge Farnan found the charge proven in June after a judge-alone trial at which Bradshaw denied kicking Mr Johnson in the head as he lay on the ground.

Bradshaw played four years of college basketball in the United States before a professional career with clubs in New Zealand, Australia, Spain, South Korea and Latvia from 2007 to 2012.

He represented New Zealand from 2004 to 2010, making his debut at the 2004 Olympic Games.

Defence counsel Liam Collins said the defendant had lost his job of four years with Fuji Xerox as a result of media coverage of the trial.

He was now on a three-month trial with a new employer but that job was contingent on getting a discharge, Mr Collins said.

His embarrassment at the media coverage had been exacerbated by a 16-month delay in a date being set for a trial - a trial later put off from October last year to June this year - for reasons not entirely the defendant's fault.

He urged a discharge be granted on the grounds of Bradshaw's ``exceptional previous character'' and the likely impact of a conviction on his ability to care for his young daughter.

Judge Farnan said there was no independent evidence showing the defendant had lost his job as a result of the media attention, but rather that he was made redundant.

He had denied assaulting the victim and given no hint of remorse other than making an offer of reparation that day.

Bradshaw's superior height and size had put Mr Johnson in a ``vulnerable'' position during the attack, and prompted him to quit his job in the security industry.

Judge Farnan told Bradshaw a conviction was unlikely to have an impact on the upbringing of his daughter, and she did not accept it affected his job prospects.

Bradshaw's two companions on the night were charged with disorderly behaviour and later granted police diversion.

Discharge granted

A Canadian ski instructor has been granted a discharge without conviction on a drink-driving charge.

Hugo Giles Peckham (24), of Wanaka, was charged with drink-driving after he was seen moving his vehicle about 30m from one part of the town's Ardmore St car park to another on July 20.

He recorded a breath-alcohol level of 773mcg.

Counsel Louise Denton said the defendant pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and there had been no driving fault.

A conviction would make it unlikely he could travel to Canada, preventing him from taking up an offer of work this northern winter.

It would also jeopardise a more than five-year relationship with his partner, who lived in Canada, Ms Denton said.

Judge Farnan granted Peckham the discharge but disqualified him from driving for six months and imposed court costs of $130.

Wilful damage

James Stirling Williamson (28), a Canadian national, of Queenstown, was charged with wilful damage of a television belonging to Patricia Muri and wilful damage to a vehicle tyre belonging to Robert Horrocks, both in Queenstown on September 18 this year. He was also charged with possession of class C-controlled cannabis and possession of a cannabis utensil, a pipe, both in Queenstown on September 23 this year.

Judge Farnan convicted and discharged the defendant on the two drug-related charges. For the wilful damage to the television, he was convicted and sentenced to 40 hours' community work, while for the wilful damage to the tyre, he was convicted and ordered to pay $429 reparation.