Broome man Brock Nicholson pleads guilty after booze-fuelled chair prank goes horribly wrong

A booze-fuelled prank has ended up in court after a Broome man started frothing at the mouth and bleeding when he was tipped out of a chair while passed out. Brock William Nicholson, 19, will be sentenced in Broome Magistrate’s Court on Friday on a charge of committing an act that caused bodily harm — which carries a maximum two-year jail term — over the March 22 incident. Nicholson, who had no prior criminal history, and the victim John Davies, also 19, were at a mutual friend’s Bilingurr house after partying the previous night. Davies, who had been drinking during the party, passed out in a garden chair in the alfresco dining area of the property when Nicholson tipped him out of the chair sideways while another friend filmed it on their mobile phone. However, the seemingly funny stunt quickly turned into a nightmare when Davies landed head-first on the concrete, causing bleeding and foaming at the mouth. After first being taken to the hospital by Nicholson and friends, Davies was flown to Perth for treatment. He suffered a fractured skull and bleeding on the brain. Nicholson was arrested on suspicion of committing grievous bodily harm but the charge was later downgraded to committing an act that caused bodily harm or danger to another person. He pleaded guilty to the downgraded charge. “Something so small as a joke can impact someone’s life so dramatically,” Davies told the Broome Advertiser. “Being in hospital during the peak of COVID was also really difficult but facing all of that has made me a stronger person and made me realise life can change in an instant. “You never know what’s around the corner. Doing rehab has shown me how lucky I am and has made me feel like I won the lottery as things could have been worse. I would like to thank all of the Broome Hospital staff for saving my life, especially Dr David Hale.” Earlier this month the court was told Nicholson was “extremely remorseful” about the incident and immediately came to the victim’s aid when he recognised how serious the situation was. His lawyer Brianna Lonnie said Nicholson had no intention to deliberately cause harm to the victim but only intended to play a joke on him. She also said during sentencing submissions her client had engaged in counselling to monitor his drinking, which he used to cope with the trauma of the episode. The incident had triggered previous trauma Nicholson had suffered when he saw a friend die in a motorcycle accident, the court heard. Nicholson’s sentencing was adjourned on November 16 until tomorrow for a medical report on the victim to be obtained.