After pointing a drunk man to a public toilet, a Good Samaritan was punched more than 10 times and decked twice in the aftermath.
Willie Ngatupuna Cameron (38) was in the Night ’n Day store in the Octagon in the early hours of March 10.
"The defendant, who was intoxicated, stated that he couldn’t find a toilet and was very angry," a summary of facts said.
The victim, who was also in the shop, told him where the nearest public amenities were.
Rather than thank him for his help, Cameron called him "a f... little brown boy" and walked off.
Later, as the victim walked down Princes St, the defendant approached him from behind.
As the man turned to face him, Cameron turned his cap backwards.
Then he unleashed a flurry of punches to the victim’s face, sending him to the ground.
The man was helped up by a member of the public but that was not the end of the ordeal.
Cameron again confronted the victim and asked him "if he wanted his neck snapped".
He threw another five punches at the man’s head, knocking him over again.
The victim sustained a split lip, a cut to his chin and damage to a tooth.
Cameron told police it was the other man who had been the instigator but later admitted a charge of assault with intent to injure.
Despite their differences on the night in question, the Dunedin District Court this week heard the men had sat down during a restorative justice conference recently.
The victim accepted his attacker’s apology and Cameron promised he would attend anger management and counselling for his alcohol use.
"It seems to me the victim was fairly forgiving with what happened and that was very generous of him," Judge John Macdonald said.
He said the incident was sadly typical of cases that came before the court.
"[It is] yet another example of mindless and unprovoked street violence," the judge said.
Cameron had a significant list of prior convictions and the court heard he had no address at which to serve an electronically-monitored sentence.
But Judge Macdonald declined to jail the man.
He sentenced Cameron to 12 months’ intensive supervision and 250 hours’ community work.
The defendant was also ordered to pay the victim $1000.
The judge said that figure was bearing in mind "your financial circumstances are not too flash at the moment".