Judge says Thomson "showed arrogance cutting back on (Cooper's) perfect wave."
In news from the Ballina Court House, the surf-mat rider Mark Thomson has been found guilty of assaulting former pro surfer Jodie Cooper.
Cooper, who was the world number two in 1985, said Thomson dropped in on her on a crowded day at Lennox Head (100 surfers in the water) and, after a collision, held her underwater.
“He had reached around and grabbed me and pushed me under the water. He just grabbed me with two hands and just forced me under the water,” Cooper told Ballina Local Court. “It was like he was standing on top of me and as he was doing that he was pulling my hair.”
Cooper says she then feigned drowning to stop the attack.
“Why don’t I just pretend that I drowned? … When I went limp thinking I was dead or drowned or something, that’s when he released,” she told the court.
The judge said she found Thomson to be an unreliable witness (Thompson said Cooper’s account was flawed because he can’t do cutbacks on his mat despite video evidence to the contrary), rejected his version of the event and said he “showed arrogance cutting back on her perfect wave”.
She found that Thomson deliberately and intentionally assaulted Cooper and was the aggressor “at all times.”
Outside the Court House, Cooper said, I’ve seen a lot of horrible occurrences in the water. There are still a few shifty characters out there who are still doing this…people have to realise you can’t get away with doing these things and think you can get away with it.”
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Regardless of who what where how , trying to drown a fellow surfer isn’t on. I wonder how half of the commentators here beating their chests would react had the same thing happened to them. More violence ?. Wonderful just what the world needs as if there isn’t enough. This laying claim to the ocean in ranks of seniority of the ” no this is MY wave ” nonsense just begets more nonsense as there will always be disruptors looking to upset the status quo. ” The crew ” this that and the next drug deal . What happened to enjoying life and all the world has to offer. No one can lay claim to a given part of it least of all the ocean . Ask the GW’s they tell you. As for the Thompson’s of the world, I’m a firm believer in karma . Seen it to many times not to.
it shouldnt have gone to court. she is a snitch isnt she?
This isn’t Gangland. The guy tried to kill her. Fuck him, the truth hurts. Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time… He gave her no respect, he gets no respect.
LGR you know the game here. Relax a bit. And fucks who drown women lose all privileges of waveriding. Lastly by your logic just because Emerson Lake and Palmer were popular in the 60s means we should still be blasting them today bc it’s all about the music. No thanks.
He drops in, she tells him off.
He gets embarrassed in front of his minions at the Point, grabs her head and starts drowning her to save reputation in front of minions.
Found guilty of assaulting a woman and a liar.
He surfs back at Point and minions high five and support him.
End of story.
Any wonder domestic violence in Australia has 1 woman killed by inadequate insecure bullying men every week.
Fuck, what a whole pack of fuckwits.
There’s plenty scattered up an down the coast. Go to Dudley if you wanna meet some high grade fucken clowns.
Actually mereweather locals aren’t far behind
Interesting story , where man assaults woman in surf , she fears for her life after being continually dunked , Judge doesn’t believe CarKarse , and the considers giving him community service….
this raises some interesting questions like if you were Jodies , Dad/Brother/Uncle…….what would you think and do to someone who assaulted your Daughter/Sister/Auntie and would you be happy that he didn’t serve jail time?
Or is that because as men and women are equal, therefore there is no gender inequality , so he has the right to physically assault her , because she crashed into him?
I would like to see him do a stretch in prison , as he might learn ( Or be broke back mountained) that some old school rules are still part of a man’s moral compass!
Well said Brutus.
I have a daughter and wouldnt be happy with community service.
It just sends a crap message to blokes that society will only make you mow a few lawns when you beat a woman.
Good on Jodie for taking him.
Sad that nobody stepped in when he was drowning her.
As for Moral Compass, if there aint an app for it, people dont know what that is!!
really interested to see who the so called locals are at Lennox, to let this type of behaviour go without consequences , is a very sad reflection on the gutlessness of what a local community surf community is.
I have asked a pretty broad spectrum of locals down here what would happen if someone dunked a girl 3 times…same answer every time ….he’d be banned and when he got out of hospital would have to live somewhere else….maybe that’s just us southerners?
I have wondered why that wasnt the case at Lennox.
curtis used to regulate. hes mellowed. now its a fkn shitshow.
He’s a wanker too
its a shitshow out there now with noone barking
Yeah same up an down the coast.
But fuck I seen him try bully crew for no reason.
A couple times I seen him go off I was on his side. The rest he just came off as a complete dick.
As they say manners maketh the man. Guess he ain’t no man.
Is George Greenough your dad?
women shouldn’t be in the lineup in the first place, next thing you know they will be demanding equal pay
firewire/ firewater.
How come she never pressed charges against Johnny Boy Gomes for punching her at Pipeline?
Are you saying she shouldn’t have done it now because she didn’t then?
No, I’m just questioning why she didn’t do anything then, when it was just as serious of an assault, with just as many witnesses.
Seriously? Can you imagine the intimidation back in the Wild West that was the North Shore? An intimidated girl in a foreign land, getting belted and no one stepping in. Imagine her head space.
i heard some leba crew talked her into pressing charges
She possibly dropped in on JBG who maybe thought she was a bloke…
“There are still a few shifty characters out there…”
Seems like someone has drawn up a hit list.
“There’s a guy ‘checking the waves’ 50 times a day…”
Sounds like a re-viewer of sorts.
Pardon my ignorance but is this guy related to Dan Thompson by any chance?
Daddy. https://beachgrit.com/2018/…
And just realised I misspelled Thomson…
No wonder slater is trying to get out of taxes.
His father
So regardless of gender if the opposite had happened, person who dropped in had their head held under water would that also be deemed a crime?
exactly!
That could then break 50 years of grumpy local culture and tradition leaving open the door for total VAL domination. Oh dear.
Grade A fuckwit it seems.
I can’t believe that the “I can’t do cutbacks” defense failed Mr. Thompson on this occasion. It’s usually a bulletproof strategy.
You fucked up Mr Thompson
A real man.
Rides a mat and holds a woman’s head underwater.
Anybody up there ever see him do this to a man on a surfboard?
I have never seen a real man ride a surf mat. Or a real woman. Or a real gender nonconforming person. I saw an overwight balding tourist from Ohio slathered in sunblock ride a confederate flag beach mat over the falls once.
Myrtle Beach!
Kenny gets a pass
Surf regularly with an old bloke who rides one who is without doubt the nicest gentleman I have ever shared the line up with. Deadset legend, still charges on it too
Greenough is a real man. What he was riding had no influence on his behavior. It would still be fun to knife his mat though.
I had the c–t drop in on me at 2-3′ Lennox. I refuse to get upset about little waves, it’s just not worth it. So I kick out, board caught in strong offshore flies through the air. Next thing aforementioned c–t is yelling at me accusing me of kicking my board at him. Total psycho. Fully expected him to be waiting on shore with a rock in his hand. I thought mat riders are supposed to be happy?
He was found guilty of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, which is a step up from just assault.
“The judge said she found Thompson to be an unreliable witness”
Thats some damming words right there. Do we know about sentencing?
“The magistrate has ordered that Mr Thomson be assessed for his suitability for community service work.”
The magistrate absolutely picked apart Carcass’ version of events and found him to be “unreliable” at pretty much every turn – to a fair extent, he buried himself.
That’s politically correct term for “Fucken lying cunt”
Do we get then LT piece on it now? Or after the sentencing?
PS LT answer my question about your octafish please
sorry mate, haven’t had a chance to catch up on comments for a few days. will get to it.
Got the footage from a mate if you want it for a article.
already seen it a thousand times but thanks.
Is it online anywhere? Case no longer sub judice and in the public interest. Would be interesting to see what actually happened.
You should put it up here.
Best way to shame the bloke is to have that footage up on a website for people to see and shame them more.
A website for women beaters. Just add names as they come up. Men like that fear embarrassment and reputation loss far more than anything else.
While there would definitely be interest in LT’s take on this, would totally understand were he not to contribute on this topic.