Teenager placed under house arrest for smashing Wellington man Brian Fowler in the head with a brick

A Wellington teenager who smashed a man in the head with a brick has been sentenced – and his name will be permanently removed

The teenager, who pleaded guilty to aggravated wounding and drug-related charges, was sentenced in Wellington District Court today to five months' home detention and ordered to pay $700 in reparation.

His victim, Brian Fowler, told NZME he is no longer a “shadow” of his former self more than a year after the attack in the driveway of his Southgate home.

He said the incident left him with lingering health problems and personality changes.

Crown prosecutor Jess MacPherson said the attack was a serious offense against a member of the public strongly opposed to the suppression of the teenager's name.

The teenager's lawyer, Val Nisbet, said the scuffle and scuffle had serious consequences, acknowledged by the young man and his mother.

But he urged the judge to impose a community detention sentence, saying the teenager needed to work and it was something he and his family wanted to do.

“He’s young, very young and he’s been through a tough time,” Nisbet said.

Judge Bruce Davidson said the offense was serious and occurred shortly after the teenager turned 18.

But the judge also made it clear that the teenager had had difficulties.

“It's clear that your teenage years were marred by mental health and drug issues and these are difficult issues for anyone to face, let alone anyone as young as you,” he said.

Judge Davidson said the teenager's age, coupled with his fragile mental health, were reasons to permanently clear his name.

When asked what he thought of the phrase, Fowler replied, “I'm not outraged by it.”

“He had to face the consequences of his actions. He's been through some inconveniences and I just want him to make the best of his situation and never do it again. But I am not sure. »

“It was pretty intense.”

The 69-year-old was injured in December 2022 after hearing a noise in his driveway around 2:30 a.m.

He slipped out and saw the light on in his SUV, with a pair of legs sticking out as the teenage thief rummaged around inside.

“I went out and grabbed him and had a stern word with him, shall we say,” he told NZME.

The two men struggled for a while, ending up on the ground several times.

“It was pretty intense,” he said.

“It was an unedifying sight.”

Fowler, who previously served in the military and studied martial arts, said he had been rough with the teen but did not hurt him beyond “manhandling.”

“I was careful not to hurt him, he just got knocked down a bit.”

He said the teen offered to return the 90 cents he stole from the car if Fowler would let him go.

“I said ‘it doesn’t work like that’.”

Fowler intended to detain the teen until police arrived, but as they scuffled, the teen grabbed a brick in the darkness and smashed it into the side of his head from Fowler, causing him to briefly pass out.

“I came to and found his hand in my mouth. . . It was extraordinary. This guy wasn't an experienced fighter, but I am.

Fowler said he “sorted it out, picked it up and threw it on his wife's bench seat.” Then, in front of a “captive audience”, he “gave them an idea of ​​me”.

“He decided he was no longer interested in hearing from me. . . he just slipped out from under me. He was young, agile and fast, too fast for me.

The teen disappeared into the “jungle” of a section of Fowler, and police arrived shortly after.

The teenager was bitten by police dogs during his arrest.

“Territory of Stroke and Death”

While sitting on the couch being evaluated by paramedics, Fowler began feeling weak and could no longer speak. He felt himself slowly tip to the side, but paramedics were able to catch him before he fell. He then began to have several seizures.

He continued to have seizures in the hospital, his blood pressure dropping to 70 over 50, which he said put him “in stroke territory and death territory.”

He also had heart problems which he believed were linked to confusing signals coming from his brain.

He was eventually stabilized, but spent days in the hospital before being released.

A year and a half after his injury, Fowler said he has improved but his recovery is “not a finished project.”

For a long time, he had difficulty sleeping at night, lying stiff and awake listening to outside noises. “It wasn't rigid with fear, it was just adrenaline.

“At the slightest sound, I would get up and prowl around the house with a torch.”

He had occasional tremors and small seizures at night, as if someone had wrapped a hairnet around his scalp and was pulling it tighter. He also felt like his brain was “mush” and believes he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder.

Fowler had to give up his business as a sole trader in concrete cutting and demolition and lost his strength.

“I am now only a shadow of what I was.”

During this time, he said his therapy team believed he was suffering from mental health problems caused by his head trauma, which had changed his personality.

Fowler now describes himself as unreasonable and quick to anger, often finding himself ready to physically fight someone over minor issues.

“Every time something goes wrong, it happens in the blink of an eye. I don't like someone and everything is on and my fist is clenched.

He would sometimes have “outbursts of anger”, which could be triggered by incidents such as discovering that his attacker was asking for his name to be permanently removed.

“I am appalled,” he said, adding that he believed being named was “the price you pay” for offending, and that “secrecy was not a valid expectation.”

Catherine Hutton is an Open Justice journalist, based in Wellington. She worked as a journalist for 20 years, including at the Waikato Times and RNZ. Most recently, she worked as a media advisor at the Department of Justice.