Jersey Unreported Judgments

 2002/154

ROYAL COURT

(Samedi Division)

 

16^th August 2002

 

 

The Attorney General

-v-

Mark John Lovegrove;

Karl McShane

 

 

1 count of:

Grave and criminal assault

 

Age:     M J Lovegrove: 30

            K McShane:  34.           

 

Plea:    Guilty

 

Details of Offence:

In early hours of the morning an altercation ensued in Halkett Place between the defendants and the victim.  The defendants had been drinking to excess all day and the victim had also been drinking.  The incident was captured by a CCTV camera.

 

McShane and the victim had squared up and the victim had rolled up his sleeves.  Lovegrove then approached the two men and tried to separate them.  He lightly brushed the victim's cheek with the back of his hand.  The victim then threw a punch at Lovegrove who ducked.  After this McShane punched the victim twice and kicked the victim in the upper leg.  The victim fell over in the scuffle.  Lovegrove kicked the victim in the face and McShane kicked him in the back of the head before delivering a further heavy kick and a punch to the victim's upper body.

 

The Police arrived whilst the assault was in progress and arrested McShane.  Before his arrest, Lovegrove first attempted to hide and then to run away.

 

Details of Mitigation:

Lovegrove:

Tried to defuse situation in the beginning.  Played peripheral part in assault.  Kick to head was not a heavy one and was wearing trainers.  Letter of remorse.

McShare:

Remorse/apology to victim.  Felt provoked.  Not a prolonged attack.  Past history of mild psychiatric treatment.  Effect on young family and mortgage in U.K.

 

Previous Convictions:

Lovegrove:  29 offences, 9 of which were for offences of violence.

McShane:   12 offences, 4 of which were offences of violence.

 

Conclusions:

M.J. Lovegrove:  15 months' imprisonment.

K. McShane : 15 months' imprisonment.

 

 

Sentence and Observations of Court:

M.J. Lovegrove:  9 month's imprisonment.

K McShane:  12 months' imprisonment.

 

Street violence of this kind will not be tolerated in St Helier.  It is unacceptable to drink to excess and then to fight.  To kick somebody in the head is very dangerous, and it was fortunate that victim did not come to serious harm in this instance.

 

Court agreed that there were grounds for distinguishing Lovegrove as "a peacemaker" in the incident.

 

 

C. Yates, Esq., Crown Advocate.

Advocate C.R.G. Deacon for M. J. Lovegrove

Advocate R. Tremoceiro for K. McShane.

 

 

JUDGMENT

 

THE BAILIFF:

1.        As the Court has stated on many previous occasions, street violence of this kind will not be tolerated by the Court.  It is unacceptable for people to drink themselves into a state of near oblivion and then to become involved in serious assaults of this kind.  To kick a man in the head as both these defendants did is highly dangerous and could quite easily have resulted in permanent damage to the victim or worse.  They are in fact fortunate that their actions did not result in more serious injury. 

2.        We accept that the assaults were provoked in the sense that the victim struck the first blow, but it was a situation from which both defendants could quite easily have walked away.  Having said that, we think that defence counsel correctly characterised this offence as a drunken brawl, and had it not been for the kicks to the head of the victim, the charge might very well have been similar to that laid against the victim, who was charged with a breach of the peace.  We agree with counsel for Lovegrove that there are grounds for distinguishing between Lovegrove and McShane.  Lovegrove's efforts to keep the other two apart and to act as a peacemaker do justify in our judgment some differential. 

3.        We take into account the guilty pleas and your co-operation with the police, we also take account of the fact that no injury of any significance was caused to the victim.  We agree that the offence is at the lower end of the scale of grave and criminal assault and the sentence of the Court is that you, Lovegrove, will go to prison for 9 months; and you, McShane, will go to prison for 12 months.

Authorities

A.G. -v- Harvey & McLoughlin (10^th May, 2002) Jersey Unreported; [2002/95].

Attorney General's Reference (No. 5 of 1994) (Partridge) Archbold (1995 Ed'n) Criminal Appeal Office Index: Index No 3: A-56.

Mallet -v- A.G. (14^th July, 2000) Jersey Unreported; [2000/134] CofA.

Blackstone's Criminal Practice (2001 Ed'n): Assault occasioning actual bodily harm: pp. 170-173.