Former Home and Away star Orpheus Pledger is set to appeal his jail sentence for attacking a woman.
The Mason Morgan actor pleaded guilty in March to violently assaulting a woman, which led to hospitalisation and “bruises on her head and hand, lacerations on her face and signs of strangulation” (via ABC News).
After his sentencing was delayed last month and Pledger was granted bail, he returned to court today (August 16), where he was sentenced to seven months imprisonment and a 12-month community corrections order.
An appeal has now been filed in the County Court, which will be heard on November 12, with Pledger granted bail in the meantime.
Magistrate Justin Foster said that Pledger was in a better place than when he was previously given bail in April, while expressing some reservations (via News.com.au).
Lawyer Justin MacCuspie argued that there had been no issues while Pledger was on bail over the past six weeks and that most of his sentence would be complete by the time of the appeal.
The court was previously told that a woman called emergency services with concerns over Pledger’s mental health, telling the operator “he’s coming” before the phone cut.
Police later arrived at the Melbourne address and found the woman injured, before she was hospitalised. Pledger was arrested and released on bail, though was taken into custody after leaving the hospital while awaiting a mental health assessment.
Defence lawyer MacCuspie said Pledger’s mental health initially declined after missing out on a role in TV series The 100, also saying that his client’s use of the drug methylamphetamine had played a role in the attack. He was previously arrested for drug possession in 2021.
In July, MacCuspie told the court that Pledger’s mental health had stabilised and that staff at a Correctional Centre found he did not need involuntary treatment.
Foster agreed to a request that Pledger could live with his father in the meantime.
If you’ve been affected by any of the issues raised in this story, organisations including Refuge (www.refuge.org.uk) and Women’s Aid (www.womensaid.org.uk) can provide further support and information. The 24-hour, freephone National Domestic Abuse Helpline is 0808 2000 247. The US National Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), or text LOVEIS to 22522.
