A WARRNAMBOOL man who punched a teenager less than a week after receiving a final chance in court will spend three months in prison.
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Trent Van Kempen, 21, of Toal Drive, Warrnambool pleaded guilty to unlawful assault in Warrnambool Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
In February this year Van Kempen drove with friends to Port Campbell where another group of people, some known to Van Kempen, was present at the beach front.
Some of the other group approached him several times to tell him the victim wanted to fight him.
Van Kempen approached the 16-year-old victim and told him he wanted to fight, then punched him in the head and face.
When questioned by police, the court heard his reason for the assault was, "I'm paranoid and I'm provoked." Van Kempen's defence counsel told the court he had been placed on a suspended sentence less than a week before the incident.
On February 14 Van Kempen pleaded guilty in the Warrnambool Magistrates Court to recklessly causing injury, after punching a man sitting on his car in the nose.
On Tuesday, Magistrate Michael Coghlan described the assault at Port Campbell as a "nasty, cowardly thing".
"You cannot continue to act in the way you have," he said.
"You're hurting people and you're going to end up back in jail.
"If you do that it's going to hurt your family, your girlfriend and your child potentially.
"In the end I've got to restore your suspended sentence."
The magistrate sentenced Van Kempen to 14 days prison to be served concurrently as part of a three month penalty for breaching his suspended sentence.
