A man has been jailed for choking charges and breaching an AVO at Parkes Local Court.

Lachlan Forbes Lilley was sentenced to 14 months in prison with a non-parole period of nine months after being found guilty of contravening a restriction in an AVO and intentionally choking a person without their consent.

The 23-year-old was on an Intensive Corrections Order at the time of the offence.

Contravene AVO at Parkes Local Court

The police facts were handed up for the contravene AVO charges at Parkes Local Court. The Court heard that at approximately 6pm on Friday, 27 August 2021, Lilley wrote something on the back wall of the victim's house in chalk.

Upon sighting this, the complainant asked Lilley to leave the property a number of times. This led to an argument between the two which escalated to the point where the victim punched Lilley in the face.

The defendant then grabbed the victim and dragged her before placing her in a choke hold. The police facts went on to say that Lilley strangled the victim for about one minute before the victim was able to break free. This was the basis for the choking charges.

The victim called police and Lachlan Lilley left shortly afterwards. Police attended the residence at around 7:30pm and spoke with the victim.

She told police that she had punched Lilley in the face, causing his face to be cut, and he had retaliated. It was unclear whether she was charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Mr Lilley did not attend the police station as requested. However, a few days later on 1 September 2021, the victim phoned police saying that Lilley was present.

Police arrived and arrested Lilley before taking him back to the police station.

Sentenced to Jail

Lachlan Lilley appeared for sentencing at Parkes Local Court on Thursday, 21 October 2021. During the proceedings, Magistrate Fiona McCarron said his offending was serious and aggravated by Lilley being in the victim's home.

The fact that Lilley was subject to an Intensive Corrections Order (ICO) at the time of the incident also made the offence more serious.

The breach of AVO was due to violence. As such, under section 14 of the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007, the Court was required to impose a term of imprisonment unless there were reasons not to do so.

AVO Lawyers

An AVO is an apprehended violence order. It is a Court order imposed on a person for the protection of another person (or persons).

In today's context, domestic violence charges are very common. There have been a number of recent examples of AVOs being withdrawn and/or dismissed after retaining experienced domestic violence lawyers. You can view some of those cases by clicking here.

We have offices throughout the Sydney metropolitan area where you can speak to Sydney, Liverpool and Parramatta Criminal Lawyers. We can arrange a conference for you with a Law Society Accredited Specialist in AVOs. Call Astor Legal on (02) 7804 2823. Or, you can email info@astorlegal.com.au.

There are some mandatory conditions that come with an AVO, and then there are other optional conditions. These conditions restrict the behaviour of the person on whom the AVO is imposed.

As an AVO is not a criminal conviction, it will not appear on any Police check. However, an AVO may place restrictions on what you can and cannot do. Some common examples of conditions are:

  • You cannot approach or contact a particular person or persons;
  • You cannot enter a particular premises;
  • You cannot go within a certain distance of a particular location;
  • You cannot be in the company of a particular person within 12 hours of consuming alcohol.

Because of this, people often ask how to get an AVO dropped in NSW.

In order to know how to beat an AVO, a defendant must consult Section 16 of the Act sets out the factors that must be proved on the balance of probabilities:

1. The alleged victim has reasonable grounds to fear a personal violence offence from you; and

2. The alleged victim, fears a personal violence offence from you unless:

a) The alleged victim is under 16 years of age

b) The alleged victim has a mental impairment

c) the alleged victim has, in the past, been subject to a personal violence offence from you and the court believes there is a reasonable likelihood of it occurring again.

3. It is appropriate to make an AVO in the terms sought.

If any of these matters cannot be proved, then the AVO will not be made.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.