Richmond’s Balta dodges jail, cops curfew for assault
A star AFL player has been spared jail time after pleading guilty to assault in an alcohol-fuelled incident outside a water ski club.
AFL star Noah Balta has avoided jail time and instead been handed a night-time curfew as part of his punishment for assaulting a man outside a regional venue.
Balta, who plays for Richmond, was sentenced at Albury Local Court on Tuesday after pleading guilty to repeatedly punching Thomas Washbrook, 27, outside the Mulwala Water Ski Club, in the NSW Riverina, on December 30.
He was fined $3000, given an 18-month community corrections order and assigned a curfew, restricting him to his home address between 10pm and 6am until July.
Assault occasioning actual bodily harm carries a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment in NSW.
Balta must abstain from alcohol for the duration of his community corrections order.
The premiership defender has also paid the victim $45,000 in compensation, the court was told.
Mr Washbrook was waiting for a courtesy bus at the club when he tried to intervene in an altercation between another man and Balta’s younger brother Oskar.
The court was told Balta saw Mr Washbrook touch his brother on the shoulder and felt a need to defend him.
CCTV footage shown to the court showed Balta shoulder charge the victim before punching him several times in the head.
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Balta punched Mr Washbrook several more times, with the assistance of his brother, who has also been convicted of assault.
The AFL star turned himself in to police two days later on New Year’s Day.
In sentencing Balta, Magistrate Melissa Humphreys said the attack was at the higher end of the medium threshold and disagreed that there was a risk of death beyond a reasonable doubt.
The Richmond player had been on a pub crawl from 1.30pm on the day of the assault.
