A 30-YEAR-OLD man who assaulted a woman but failed to return to Jersey for his hearing in the Magistrate’s Court has been sentenced in absentia.
Ieuan Hickey was fined £1,200 for the charge of common assault, and also convicted of failure to surrender to court – but will only be arrested for the offence if he sets foot in the Island again.
Crown Advocate Lauren Taylor, prosecuting, said that on the evening of 30 November an off-duty police officer had seen Hickey put his hands on the woman’s shoulders or her neck and push her against a gate, causing her to fall to the ground and suffer cuts to her knees.
The court was shown photos of the injuries.
Hickey had been in Jersey temporarily for work at the time of the incident. He was released on bail and allowed to return to the UK, and was due to appear in court but did not turn up.
Advocate James Corbett, defending, said: “He has no connection with Jersey except the work he had, and he has no money to actually get here.”
He also said that his client had written a “very polite letter” to the court to explain his absence, something which he described as “very rare”.
The lawyer added that Hickey had pleaded guilty and had no previous convictions, and argued: “It was not a sustained attack. It did not have to be broken up by anybody. It occurred as a result of recklessness.”
Assistant Magistrate Adam Clarke said the fact that Hickey had failed to attend court limited the number of sentencing options he had.
However he said: “One could categorise this offence as [involving] a low level of force, causing minor injury.”
Hickey has been given three months to pay the fine.
