Kate wins over locals
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ASHBURTON
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Wednesday, April 9, 2014
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Burglar butt of extreme bullying An Ashburton teenager was bullied to the point of an emotional collapse when he committed a number of burglaries, a court has been told. The teenager, who cannot be named or identified, appeared in the Ashburton District Court this week for sentencing on six counts of burglary. His lawyer argued for a discharge without conviction, pointing to the circumstances surrounding the offending and quoted excerpts from a court-ordered psychiatric report. The psychologist who wrote the report described the victimisation the teen experienced as horrific, and amongst the worst he had come across. He found the offending occurred when there were extreme risk factors at play, and the accused was at the point of emotional collapse. The court was told the teenager was attacked verbally, physically, and by way of social media channels, phone calls and documents and offensive objects left in his parents’ mailbox. The attacks were led by students at the school he attended last year.
Aside from the spate of offending, which his lawyer said was driven by shame, the teenager was an exemplary student and a community volunteer. His only fault was not fitting the traditional stereotype that young men are expected to conform to. He said a conviction could severely limit a promising career pathway. Judge Joanna Maze asked if anyone had come forward to apologise for the harassment, and was told not one person had. Crown prosecutor Andrew McRae argued for a conviction, saying there was a sinister element to the offending, in entering the homes of young women. He acknowledged the teenager was subject to extreme stressors at the time, but was concerned that if faced with similar pressures in the future the he might behave in a similar way. Judge Maze said she needed time to consider the matter and reserved her decision until May 6. She warned any breaches of suppression orders using social media would be treated seriously.
New moves Make way for a new dance craze in Ashburton, as hip hop’s popularity has given rise to jazz funk classes in the town.
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