Groom Beats Bride in Their Limousine on Wedding Day: Serious Injuries
Summary:
Paragraph 14 reads: "Mr Morrissey said Rusanovski had been diagnosed in 2008 with depression while a psychologist suspected he was bipolar, but a suggested change in medication did not occur before the incident. Anxiety ''pushed him into an alleviated mood' ' while drinking alcohol, which 'predisposed him'' to be aggressive and act in a 'weird and impulsive way' , he said."
"Psychologist Andrew Dunhill said symptoms of such a mood included enhanced energy and risk-taking and that alcohol tended to reduce inhibition."
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A MAN who repeatedly punched his wife and bit and choked her in the back of the bridal car on their wedding day faces jail for what a judge described as a ''flogging''.
A Melbourne court yesterday heard Adnan Rusanovski, 30, unleashed an ''impulsive burst of extraordinary and horrible aggression'' at his totally blameless wife who was left ''black and blue and covered in blood''.
Rusanovski also assaulted his best man in a stretch Hummer limousine that contained a bridal party of five teenagers, a bridesmaid, aged 11, and a nine-year-old pageboy who screamed during the attack. Advertisement: Story continues below
The County Court heard on the morning of the ceremony on May 23 last year Rusanovski was nervous and visibly upset and told best man Murat Abazi that ''I can't do this straight''.
Prosecutor Ella Piper said the pair then drank a bottle of whiskey and by 2pm about 100 guests had arrived at Rusanovski's home for the customary ceremony after the couple's earlier wedding in Macedonia.
Ms Piper said after the bridal party - which included five cousins, a niece and nephew - boarded the limousine Rusanovski drank a bottle of champagne before they arrived at Parliament House for photographs where he was aggressive and unable to stand properly.
The party drove on to Docklands where Rusanovski abused the groomsmen who tried to calm him, and as they headed to the reception centre in Epping he began spilling drinks.
Ms Piper said he then grabbed his wife, Ferdie Rusanovski, struck her in the face - the first of about 30 punches she received - and put her in a headlock as Mr Abazi tried to stop him.
After the car stopped, Rusanovski scuffled with Mr Abazi on the Western Ring Road before he returned to the car and resumed assaulting his wife.
Ms Piper said Ms Rusanovski begged him to stop, but he continued, biting her on the cheek and choking her as the children screamed he was ''hurting her''.
Judge John Smallwood heard that Rusanovski was arrested at the centre while his wife was taken to hospital with numerous injuries to her head, face, neck and an arm.
Defence barrister Peter Morrissey, SC, said there was no reason why Rusanovski would want to hurt his wife and added: ''He has absolutely no right to hit her … he just hit her for no reason at all.''
Mr Morrissey said Rusanovski had been diagnosed in 2008 with depression while a psychologist suspected he was bipolar, but a suggested change in medication did not occur before the incident. Anxiety ''pushed him into an alleviated mood'' while drinking alcohol, which ''predisposed him'' to be aggressive and act in a ''weird and impulsive way'', he said.
Psychologist Andrew Dunhill said symptoms of such a mood included enhanced energy and risk-taking and that alcohol tended to reduce inhibition.
He said Rusanovski told him after the offence he had been ''finding it hard getting used to married life'' and that the ceremony was a ''big day for him'', but Mr Dunhill agreed with Ms Piper that was true of anybody.
While Mr Morrissey said Rusanovski had a ''significant mental illness', Ms Piper submitted there was uncertainty about his condition and so no basis to ''moderate his moral culpability''.
Rusanovski, a tiler, of Hallam, who pleaded guilty to two charges, including recklessly causing serious injury, will be sentenced later.