Peter James Green, 35, arrested on July 23, 2005, pled guilty to charges of cruelty to an animal, possessing an offensive weapon and wilful damage. Green also pleaded guilty to an unrelated charge of breaching a protection order.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Brent Register told the court Green had been in a relationship with his partner for five months and was living with her and her four children at her home in Middle Rd. When Green's partner failed to pick him up from the Ashburton MSA Club about 7pm on Friday July 22, he walked home and began smashing windows. Mr Register said Green cut his hand "in his frenzy" and splattered blood throughout the council-owned house, causing further damage to walls. His partner arrived home about 11pm, saw the damage and spoke to Green briefly before leaving the property to stay elsewhere for the night. About 9pm , on July 23, 2005, Green took a long-handled axe from a shed on the property and attacked his partner's four-year-old cocker spaniel, killing the children's pet with a blow to its head.
Green was located by police at a nearby park still with the axe, which he said he had for his protection but admitted he may go "psycho".
Mr Register said Green had previously been in a relationship with a woman in Christchurch who had taken out a protection order against him. Before the Ashburton incident, he had texted the Christchurch woman, breaching the protection order. Green's lawyer, Serina Bailey, sought a remand for a pre-sentencing report and an updated victim impact report. Judge Brian Callaghan told Ms Bailey she was "wise" not to have applied for bail.
He remanded Green in custody for sentence in Ashburton District Court on December 19.
Case UpdatesA man who bludgeoned his partner's dog to death with an axe at the peak of a two-day rage has been jailed. Judge Chris Somerville said Peter James Green's "calculated" act of rage was one of the most serious cases he had seen before sentencing him to 15 months in prison.
"When all the incidents are added together, it shows at that time you were an extremely dangerous person. You were consumed by anger and rage," he said at Ashburton District Court on December 19, 2005. The judge said Green tried to kill himself soon after the events of July 23 and 24, 2005.
"You tried to hang yourself. I imagine that's because you realised how serious the situation had got and how out-of-control you had been in the previous 24 hours," he said. The offences were a "prelude to manslaughter and murder".
Judge Somerville noted that it was not until the last minute that Green had confessed. The excuses offered were "feeble".
He sentenced Green to a total of 15 months jail and ordered to pay $150 reparation after pleading guilty to wilful ill-treatment of an animal, possession of an offensive weapon, wilful damage and breach of a protection order. He was denied leave to seek home detention. | Source: Nz Herald News - December 20, 2005 Update posted on Dec 20, 2005 - 12:11PM |
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