Student who assaulted university dean appeals judgement

Former University student Glanville Goodlip, who last week was handed a suspended sentence jail term, filed an appeal from judgement as the punishment handed down by the court would revoke his auditor's warrant

Glanville Goodlip, 22, was convicted over charges of assaulting the University of Malta's dean of the Faculty of Science, Prof. Carmelo Sammut, during graduation celebrations on 1 December, 2011. The two came to blows after the youth sounded a fog-horn at the Dean's ears and Sammut threw the horn to the floor. During the scuffle Goodlip hit the Dean with a bottle and continued beating him when the man fell to the floor. A Court of Magistrates handed Goodlip a six-month jail term suspended for two years.

In his appeal, the youth held that he had assaulted the Dean after the victim provoked him. While understanding that Prof. Sammut could have been irritated by the cacophony of noise made by the celebrating students, Goodlip said that this did not justify his behaviour.

It was alleged that the academic took Goodlip's fog-horn and threw it to the floor, knocked off the youth's sunglasses and scratched his face. When the student went down to look for the sunglasses the Dean pushed him to the floor. It was following this provocation that Goodlip reacted. "The Dean should not have reacted in this way, especially considering the students had been waiting for their graduation for five years," the appeal read.

Goodlip also submitted that the court should have treated the convicted youth as a first-time offender and applied a probation order or a conditional discharge, rather than a prison term and a fine. The punishment mitigated by the Court of Magistrates would lead to Goodlip losing his warrant to work as an auditor, which he earned after graduating from university.

The youth's defence lawyers called on the Court of Appeal to revoke the judgement of the previous court and acquit Goodlip. Should the court however uphold the judgement, the defence said it would call for a change in punishment which will reflect the accused's clean police record and safeguard his future.

Lawyers Veronique Dalli and Dean Hili signed the appeal.