One of the stars of TV crime show Westside has been fined $500 after an assault outside his family home.
Pana Lawrence Hema-Taylor, who starred in the hit film Boy, earlier pleaded guilty to an assault charge after coming to the aid of his mum and sister during a streetside melee.
The 28-year-old appeared in Auckland District Court today before Judge Russell Collins on a charge relating to the incident outside his family's home last February.
Sentencing was due to take place on September 15, but was delayed after Hema-Taylor missed his flight from Napier.
Police did not seek a warrant for his arrest.
Hema-Taylor played the role of mechanic Bert Thompson in TV3's Westside was initially facing a charge of assault with intent to injure. However, the charge was amended to common assault given the circumstances of the incident.
The night of the incident Hema-Taylor was home with a young child.
The victim had been drinking and "settled" outside Hema-Taylor's home where they proceeded to make noise.
Hema-Taylor's relatives went outside to ask the victim and his group to be quiet.
The situation escalated from there and Hema-Taylor, perceiving a threat to his family, stepped in.
"You reacted in the heat of the moment and kicked him in the head," Judge Collins said.
"All-in-all it was an unfortunate event.
"It certainly had an impact on the victim."
Judge Collins acknowledged Hema-Taylor was a high profile defendant - but he did not want the case to be "clouded" by his "celebrity" status.
"You're an actor, people need to realise you're not being treated today because of that," he said.
"We see assaults like that sadly every day of the week and what Mr Mansfield has been at pains to stress in his submissions is that you don't ask for any special treatment because you're an actor, you don't ask to be treated leniently… you have consciously made the decision not seek a discharge without conviction even though that will place hurdles in your way in the future."
He said the victim did not offer violence to Hema-Taylor.
"I don't accept that he did offer violence to you but I can accept in the situation... You could have well perceived that to be the case."
Hema-Taylor had shown "clear remorse" which had been demonstrated in his early guilty plea and the steps he had taken since the incident including counselling.
He convicted the actor and fined him $500.
He also ordered Hema-Taylor to pay his victim $1500 reparation for emotional harm.
Hema-Taylor has a young son of his own with ex-partner Wentworth star Danielle Cormack, and in 2015 had a daughter with his then-girlfriend.
