£1,000 fine for man who shoved woman and smashed her phone

Monday 21 November 2022

A 24-year-old man who shoved a woman down some steps and smashed her phone has been fined £1,000, and handed a Probation order by the Magistrate's Court.

Ricardio Algarvio Pestana last week entered guilty pleas to charges of common assault and malicious damage committed on 16 July this year, and to a separate charge of grave and criminal assault on 14 March 2020.

The court was shown CCTV footage of the earlier assault, outside Havana nightclub in St Helier at 02:00.

Advocate Jordan Gollop, prosecuting, said that after an argument outside the club Pestana had hit the victim in the stomach and face. The victim fell to the ground and broke his ankle.

He said that the offences this July had occurred outside the woman's house.

"Several witnesses saw what took place, and recalled that they saw Mr Pestana throw the phone on the ground."

Pictured: Pestana was sentenced in the Magistrate's Court last week.

The woman went back into her home to find he had also damaged a set of speakers. Advocate Gollop added: "He shoved her down some steps. It was a small set of steps, but nevertheless it caused injuries to her shin and feet."

Advocate Alexander English, defending, said of the offence in 2020: "There was no intent. The injury was accidental.

"The victim was considerably bigger than the defendant. The defendant did receive some shoves from the victim. He had the option of making a self-defence argument, but didn't."

And of the assault against the woman in July, he said: "This happened at a time of acute emotional distress. There was no intent to hurt her.

"He recognises that all his offending occurred while he was in drink. He has not drunk alcohol since July."

Pestana was deemed at "moderate risk of reconviction" but Advocate English added: "Some significant time has passed between all his offending behaviour.

"The defendant is not a habitual, persistent offender. He is not a 'frequent flyer' with a long history of unprovoked violence. Sober, he is a responsible, good young man."

Assistant Magistrate Peter Harris told Pestana that fights outside nightclubs can lead to tragic outcomes.

He said: "It is not unheard of for someone to fall to the ground, bang their head and die."

But he accepted that the offences were "at the low end of the scale" and that Pestana had pleaded guilty early, so spared him a jail sentence.

He instead imposed a fine of £1,000 plus £430 compensation for the damage to the phone and speakers, allowing him to pay it at the rate of £150 per month.

He also imposed a year-long probation order and said: "If you commit any offence within the next 12 months you will be back here, and at that point the court may well decide you should be re-sentenced – which could include a prison sentence, with all the negative consequences that will bring."