Shaneil Janardan, 32, appeared before the Dunedin District Court yesterday after pleading guilty to two breaches of a protection order, two of injuring with reckless disregard and assault.
Judge Emma Smith stressed the defendant was no stranger to the justice system, having been convicted of similar violence charges on four previous occasions over the last 16 years.
On each time he had received sentences of supervision.
‘‘You’ve had rehabilitation sentences. You’ve squandered them,’’ the judge said.
‘‘You simply have not been able to learn from the help the court and the community has given you.’’
Janardan went to his ex-wife’s home on November 8 and found her there with a male friend,
who he claimed had assaulted one of his children, and punched him in the face.
Janardan then forced his way into the house, knocking his former partner and the man over.
As the woman tried to shield her friend, the defendant hit her at least twice and continued raining blows on the man, opening up a wound on his face.
The court heard the man now had a scar above his right eye.
Only 24 hours later, Janardan was in a supermarket carpark with his children when he became enraged that one of them had opened some sweets contrary to his wishes.
‘‘It was a minor infraction by a child over lollies,’’ Judge Smith said.
Janardan reacted by pinching the child’s thigh and twisting with such force that he broke the skin.
‘‘Realising he had grossly overreacted the defendant attempted to stem the flow of blood with towels and then drove the victim to his wife’s address where he confessed what he had done,’’ a police summary said.
The judge said it was an extension of Janardan’s previous crimes.
‘‘You’re unrestrained in your inability to act, in the normal course of life events, in a proportionate and responsible way,’’ she said.
Counsel Rose Morton said her client had spent four months behind bars awaiting sentencing, which had been a ‘‘huge wake-up call’’.
Janardan had written apology letters to all involved and was committed to undertaking any treatment prescribed, she said.
Judge Smith sentenced him to 12 months’ home detention — the maximum such sentence — to be served with family in Waimate.
‘‘It’s likely to be the last community-based sentence you’ll get for violence offending,’’ she said.
