By Cam Lucadou-Wells
AN ALCOHOLIC man who incinerated his wife’s car in the Lang Lang family home garage after a barbecue dinner argument has been convicted, banned from the house and put on a community work order.
The 37-year-old man who was charged with assault and property damage, claimed to have drunk half-a-slab of full-strength beer on the night of 13 August, Dandenong Magistrates’ Court was told.
At the barbecue, he started yelling at his son to ‘discipline’ him about 7.30pm.
After about 10 minutes of shouting, the man’s wife intervened, grabbed the son and told the man that “it was enough”.
The man grabbed her throat and tried to punch her up to three times to the face. He bruised her leg with a hard kick.
After being told to leave by his hosts, the man walked home and doused the Kia Cerato with petrol from a five-litre fuel can.
Witnesses tried to restrain the man, but he broke free and lit the fuel with a cigarette lighter.
Despite efforts by CFA crews, the blaze engulfed the car, home garage and caused smoke damage to the attached house.
None of the damage will be covered by insurance, the court heard on 22 August.
The man’s wife had told police the accused had become increasingly violent and unpredictable. Their children were receiving counselling.
Since the incident, the man was banned from contact with the family and the home under a full intervention order.
The man’s lawyer said the accused, a former CFA volunteer, had been sober for four days and was a “fantastic candidate for rehabilitation”.
“His behaviour is due to excessive alcohol consumption, and there’s been other difficult personal circumstances of late (such as) significant financial stress.
“He owns the car in question. Both he and his wife have access to the cars he owns.”
Since November, the man moved out of the family home. He had been drinking every day for several years, escalating to about three beer slabs a week.
On weekends, he was drinking about 19 beers a day.
The accused was seeking treatment for anxiety and depression, and had started attending Alcoholics Anonymous, the lawyer said.
Magistrate Gerard Bryant said the assault and property damage were serious offences, befitting an “onerous” community corrections order to make sure the accused didn’t put his family at further risk.
The man, who had no prior convictions, was put on a 150-hour unpaid work order with treatment for alcohol and mental health issues.
