“Extremely horrifying.” Those were the words used by police to describe a frenzied chainsaw attack carried out on a New South Wales woman and her family earlier this week.
Terrance Purvis faced court yesterday charged with break and enter, reckless wounding and grievous bodily harm, having handed himself into police just hours after the Tuesday-night ordeal, reports Seven News.
The 30-year-old allegedly used a chainsaw to force his way into Chloe Griffiths’ Port Macquarie home, before rounding on Griffiths and her 49-year-old mother Julie Griffiths, who attempted to fend him off with a knife.
Police have confirmed Griffiths’ two young children, aged five and seven, were home at the time. They were not injured.
Accused, Terrance Purvis. Image: Seven News.
"He had this look, I've never seen this look, it was so cold and frightening," Julie told Seven News.
"He was coming at me with the chainsaw, just flicking it left, right and centre, and I knew i got hit. I had this burning sensation in my arm."
The family barricaded themselves into a bedroom as the attacker allegedly began to cut around the door handle.
Terrified and fearful she would lose her mother, Chloe desperately called Triple 000 before reportedly managing to wrestle the weapon from his hands.
"It was fight or die, at the end of the day, and that's what we did," Chloe told Seven News.
Julie Griffiths was airlifted to John Hunter Hospital hospital for emergency surgery on her arm, the same hospital where her newest grandchild was born just hours later.
During Wednesday's court appearance, it was revealed that apprehended violence order had been taken out against Purvis prior to the attack.
He was denied bail and is due to appear in court again next month.
Top Comments
Anyone else seen THE look? When I had an attempted gang rape happen to me, something that plays on my mind is the look on every one of the boys faces, it was of sheer evil, like vultures looking at their prey. It's honestly hard to describe because the transformation of their faces was incredible, like they were of another world almost. Yet only minutes before these boys were laughing with me and making jokes and acting like normal average boys. And no alcohol/drugs were involved. It really messes with you to know that some men have that in them. It takes a lot of effort to trust again and for me it's been almost impossible to forgive and forget. It breaks my heart to read stories like this one, I know the road forward for this family is going to be hard.
I'm sorry for what you went through. I do know that look too. Terrifying to look at someome you know and not see that person there.
'Terrance Purvis faced court yesterday charged with break and enter, reckless wounding and grievous bodily harm,'
'it was revealed that apprehended violence order had been taken out against Purvis prior to the attack.'
So, why hasn't Purvis been charged with violating the AVO?
A - accelerated
V - violence
O - or death
They are not worth the paper they are written on and almost guarantee an escalation of violence or death. Lock them up, ankle bracelets, dv teams to monitor the assholes. Police spend more time chasing graffiti Crims, b & e experts or indigenous youths so they can re-allocate their time to hunt down the pricks killing women.
AVOs and restraining orders generally need to be served before they take effect - it's possible the order hadn't been served yet if it had been taken out recently.
So can we maybe get an answer to the question rather than speculating? When was it sought and by whom?
I get the anger. I have been attacked on here as if I don't understand that if someone is determined to get you a piece of paper is not going to stop them.
But I am saying that AVO's have not been as effective as they can be because the very people who should be taking them seriously, the police, don't. In other words, because the perpetrators know that they are not taken seriously they are not as effective as they could be.
The police seem very diligent in enforcing road rules (and the other crimes you mention) but delinquent in their duty of protecting people they don't believe are in any danger. Who cares what they believe? Just do your job. And with professionalism and dignity, if possible.
BTW, if orders were more prevalent the next step, lock 'em up, is possible.
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/...