Brett Shane Hayward: Katanning man imprisoned for assaulting Albany Regional Prison officers

A sentenced Katanning prisoner has copped more prison time after punching and kicking prison officers, becoming aggressive because he could not access his money.

Brett Shane Hayward, 48, appeared in Albany Magistrates Court via video link from Hakea Prison on Thursday, pleading guilty to three charges of assaulting a public officer at the Albany Regional Prison in May.

Police prosecutor Sgt Warrick Walker told the court how Hayward, a sentenced prisoner, assaulted prisoner officers who were trying to calm him down.

Hayward is serving a 12-month imprisonment sentence for breaching an intensive supervision order.

On May 3, Hayward yelled aggressively at prison officers through the bars of his cell.

As the officers tried to calm him down, Hayward punched one officer and then kicked another as the officers tried to restrain him.

Hayward was then placed in a secure cell.

Aboriginal Legal Service lawyer Georgia Herford said her client was upset after experiencing problems contacting the public trustee to access money.

She said the officers were “somewhat rough with him” but that the assaults were serious and they were “just trying to do their job”.

Magistrate Erin O’Donnell said Hayward had a “fair few” counts of assaulting public officers on his record and weighed up whether to make his imprisonment sentence cumulative or concurrent.

Ms O’Donnell acknowledged Hayward’s attack on Katanning Hospital staff where he threw a chair at staff after being denied money on June 13, 2023.

Hayward interrupted and argued that he is “not a killer”, which Ms O’Donnell agreed with but said assault can “escalate quickly”.

Hayward was sentenced to two months imprisonment on each charge, cumulative with his 12-month sentence.