Matthew Jason Williams was convicted on a total of 10 charges by Magistrate Michael O’Brien in Young Local Court for an afternoon of joy riding that ended in a car crash, assaulting a police officer and being tasered by police.
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Williams was sentenced to prison for three of his crimes and will not be eligible for parole until October 15, 2017. He was also fined a total of $700 and disqualified from driving for a total of 12 months. According to police facts the 39-year-old Temora man was charged with the 10 offences after he had crashed an unregistered vehicle that he had been driving.
Williams and a friend had been driving erratically doing burnouts in a Temora residential subdivision when the Holden Commodore stalled. The friend got out of the vehicle to do something to the motor of the vehicle when Williams got behind the wheel. After the pair started the car again it took off before the vehicle again stalled next to the fence of a property. The occupants of the property confronted the pair who threatened and abused them before they took off. Williams conducted further burnouts and donuts before he crashed into a parked vehicle and the corner of a house. Williams and the passenger of the vehicle fled the scene on foot in an attempt to escape police who had been notified by witnesses. Other witnesses also took photographic evidence police used to identify Williams as the driver of the vehicle.
Police attended the scene and followed directions from witnesses to track down Williams and the passenger in a nearby street. The passenger of the vehicle stopped and called Williams back to speak to police who questioned the pair about who was driving. Both men denied being behind the wheel and Williams claimed to the officers that the car had been stolen.
The passenger was searched with nothing of interest found, when police began to search Williams they again asked who was driving he again stated the vehicle had been stolen before he turned aggressive on the officers resulting in Williams being sprayed with OC spray.
During a further scuffle with officers, Williams was taken to the ground before the passenger tried to intervene – for what purpose was unknown to police. The distraction of the passenger allowed Williams to stand and punch one of the officers. The remaining officer drew his taser and fired it at Williams at the same moment the passenger was moving towards the accused. The taser shocked both Williams and the passenger.
