John MacDonald: Home Detention option an insult

A year ago today, Christchurch man Tony Kelly was rushed to hospital after being kicked in the head “martial arts-style” by a teenager in Cashel Mall, outside Ballantynes.

Tony didn’t survive his injuries. And, as we are finding out today, insult is being added to those injuries.

It was just after six o’clock at night, when Tony was followed by a group from the bus interchange in town who had some idea in their heads that he’d been taking photos of them.

It’s important to note that, as of now, no evidence has ever been found to support this claim that he had been taking photos of this group. Nevertheless, Tony was asked by security at the bus interchange to leave and, when he did, this group followed him.

They followed him down as far as Cashel Mall and, when one of them approached him, he obviously felt intimidated and so he threw a punch in self-defence. And that’s when things went from bad to worse.

Because, after he threw the punch in self-defence, he was kicked in the shin and another person in the group - his name’s Mark Nagel - stepped forward and kicked Tony in the head with his right foot using a martial arts-style kick.

Tony immediately lost consciousness and fell to the ground, with his head hitting the pavement.

Then this group all took-off back to the bus interchange and the two involved in the assault high-fived eachother and jumped on a bus. That was while people on the scene back at Cashel Mall were giving Tony CPR. He was taken to hospital, put in an induced coma, but tragically he died 10 days later.

I suppose if there’s any positive at all - not that it’s any compensation to Tony’s friends and family - but if there’s any positive, it would be the fact that the guy who kicked Tony in the head was caught and done for manslaughter.

He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two years in prison.

I know. Two years seems like nothing for kicking someone in the head in the street, pretty much in broad daylight, and killing them. But it gets worse.

Because the judge who dished-out the two-year sentence has told this guy that he can apply for home detention.

How would you feel if Tony was a friend or relative of yours? Killed after being kicked in the head outside Ballantynes by some thug. A two year sentence, with the prospect of that sentence being served-out on the couch at home.

I’m absolutely appalled.

Because this was not one of those manslaughter cases where, say, two people are having a bit of an argument and one of them feels threatened and pushes the other person out of their way and that person trips and hits their head and dies.

This wasn’t like that. This was a case where a guy was followed and intentionally kicked in the head by some creep getting all martial arts on it. He didn't punch Tony. He went absolutely next level and did this martial arts kick to the head.

And for him to get two years is bad enough. But for him to have the opportunity to apply for home detention and not even do his time behind bars - that is just insulting.

It’s not just insulting to Tony himself, and to his friends and family. It’s also insulting to the rest of us who expect the system to make it clear to people when they do these sorts of awful things, that there is no easy, alternative option.

Because no one can tell me that home detention isn’t the easier option, when you compare it to two years in a prison cell.

Tony’s family doesn’t have options. I wasn’t surprised to see that his son stormed out of court when the judge told this guy that he could apply for home detention.

Because Tony’s son doesn’t have options. He’s lost his father. His father’s dead. There’s no alternative. No other option.

So why should the creep who killed his father have options?

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