Boy acquitted of Weston Creek skatepark murder charged over alleged Rivett home invasion

The 17-year-old, who cannot be named, was sentenced to a partially suspended jail term by the ACT Supreme Court in August after pleading guilty to a charge of recklessly inflicting grievous bodily harm.

While he admitted stabbing a fellow teenager in the back, causing serious injury during a 2020 brawl at the Weston Creek skatepark, he was cleared of killing that victim's cousin in the same incident.

The teenager was also placed on a good behaviour order by the ACT Children's Court late last month, following another 2020 incident in which he hit a fellow high school student with a brick.

On Tuesday, just two weeks later, the boy was hauled back before that court to face six new charges.

One cannot be detailed for legal reasons, but the others allege offences of burglary, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, theft and two counts of property damage. The boy did not enter pleas.

In a statement, ACT Policing said it would allege CCTV cameras had captured the boy using a rock to break the front glass door of a Rivett home about 7pm on Sunday.

The 17-year-old then allegedly made his way to a bedroom and ransacked it.

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Police said the boy assaulted a woman who tried to remove him from the home before stealing some clothing, threatening to stab her and kicking a car as he left.

The court heard on Tuesday that the clothing in question was a $350 Kathmandu puffer jacket, and that the boy was further accused of damaging a television belonging to the woman's son.

Prosecutor Andrew Chatterton opposed bail, telling the court the defendant was also expected to be charged over an incident in which he had allegedly attacked another child at a Club Lime gym on August 18.

He called evidence from a homicide investigator, Detective Leading Senior Constable Louise Hawke, who said she understood the boy had tried several times to engage the other child in conversation.

The detective said the alleged victim had declined, prompting the "quite frustrated" defendant to punch him in the face.

Detective Leading Senior Constable Hawke indicated an assault occasioning actual bodily harm charge was anticipated in relation to that alleged incident.

Mr Chatterton referred to this, the alleged weekend home invasion and the teenager's previous convictions as he argued there was "a pattern of violence" in the boy's behaviour.

Legal Aid duty lawyer Anna Theodore proposed a series of "very strict" bail conditions, including a nightly curfew, as she unsuccessfully pressed for the boy to be granted bail.

Ms Theodore told the court the boy had been "taking solid steps towards his rehabilitation" by doing things like seeking work, having arranged an appointment with an employment agency for Thursday.

But she said he was "being let down a little bit by the adults in his life", with the boy not receiving the level of supervision he had expected from Child and Youth Protection Services in the wake of his release from the Bimberi Youth Justice Centre, where he was on remand during his murder trial.

The court heard the boy had initially lived interstate with his parents after being released, but he had since returned to the ACT and stayed in a refuge while trying to establish his independence.

Magistrate Jane Campbell ultimately denied bail and made a non-publication order, which banned media from reporting on many of the lawyers' submissions and a large part of the reason for her decision.

It can be reported that she had no confidence the boy would comply with bail conditions if he had not been deterred from further offending by his previous time in custody, his current suspended sentence or the good behaviour order imposed only two weeks ago.

The boy is due back in court on October 4.

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