Manjimup man to remain in custody after magistrate refuses to accept unsure guilty plea

A Manjimup man who wanted to plead guilty to three charges while in custody has been made to wait another two weeks after a magistrate was not convinced he really did agree with the facts. Cayne Leith Picking, 37, appeared via video link in Manjimup Magistrates Court on Thursday after having been remanded in custody at Hakea Prison. Mr Picking is facing three charged including an aggravated assault which caused bodily harm, an aggravated common assault and mistreating an animal. The court was told the first two charges related to an incident on June 26 when Mr Picking got into an argument with his partner’s son, after he interrupted Mr Picking and his partner during intimate relations. The court was told Mr Picking allegedly took him into the backyard to “have some words” but after the victim didn’t return in time for dinner that evening, the boy’s mother searched for him. The boy had fled to his uncle’s home — a 6km bike ride in rainy conditions while barefoot — with the court told he was was described as “distraught with red marks on his face”, had significant bruising on his torso and felt pain and discomfort. The court was told the mother argued with Mr Picking and kicked him out, before Mr Picking allegedly grabbed her by the throat and pushed her against a wall. Then on July 12, Mr Picking is accused of becoming mad after his partner was cleaning up after their dogs when one of their dogs nipped his finger. Mr Picking is accused of picking up the dog, before it nipped his finger again, then throwing the dog into the laundry, leaving the dog with several injuries including a ruptured eye. Mr Picking told the court he wanted to plead guilty, saying the charges were “over the top” and “happened a long time ago”. He told the court he was “a bloody good human” who wanted to “move on,” however, he disputed the facts read to the court. Mr Picking said he hadn’t harmed his partner or her son. Magistrate Robert Young told Mr Picking he would likely be facing an immediate jail term if he did plead guilty and said he did not believe Mr Picking was certain of his guilty plea. Mr Picking was asked to seek legal advice or plead not guilty, but Mr Picking insisted he wanted to plead guilty. Mr Young did not accept the plea and the man is expected to next appear in court on August 5 at Bunbury.