In 2016, Dustin Manzone Thomas, 34, was in line for a mandatory sentence of 14 years for what would have been his third aggravated robbery.
Under the previous three-strikes legislation, committing a third qualifying offence resulted in the offender serving the maximum prison term for the crime they committed.
Thomas went to a house with other patched Nomads gang members, one of whom was armed with a knife, and stole $1500 of property, threatening and assaulting the occupants as they did so.
He eventually pleaded guilty in the High Court at Wellington to demanding with menaces (a non-strike offence) and was jailed for two years three months.
Yesterday, nearly a decade later, Thomas came before the Dunedin District Court after admitting a charge of wilful damage.
The court heard he had been in a long-distance relationship with his victim for two years before they began living together in a Dunedin home.
On June 4, Thomas became upset when he woke and realised he would be late for work.
When his partner refused to get out of bed, he began shouting at her.
The woman continued to refuse Thomas a ride to work, prompting him to punch the television.
It smashed and fell to the floor.
Thomas originally told police the damage had been caused by his girlfriend throwing his phone at the television but later admitted it was him.
Judge David Robinson said there had been two previous family violence callouts to the home in which the defendant had been listed as the aggressor.
He made note of Thomas’ significant criminal history.
While his most severe crimes — aggravated robberies in 2011 and 2013 — were some time ago, they were “extraordinarily serious”, the judge said.
The defendant was convicted and discharged and ordered to pay the victim $250.
A protection order was made in her favour.
