Headbutt carer spared jail

A 52-year-old Orana man with a metal plate in his head has avoided jail for headbutting a man under his care.

Darrell John Spooner was handed an eight-month suspended prison sentence after he prevented his victim — a friend — from leaving their Orana home at 2am on June 3 to go knocking on neighbours’ doors for tobacco.

Last Friday, Albany Magistrate’s Court heard Spooner was a carer for his “long-term” friend, who suffered from mental illnesses.

Spooner, a disability pensioner, had a metal plate implanted in his skull after a motorcycle accident in 2006.

The victim was left with two black eyes after the headbutt.

Magistrate Raelene Johnston said Spooner had escaped an immediate term of imprisonment because the victim provoked Spooner by biting him twice as he was blocked from leaving the home. “The victim wanted to leave his own home. He was entitled to,” Ms Johnston said.