Brawler goes free (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Brawler goes free

8:44am Friday 18th January 2008 in Swindon By Gazette Reporter

A drinker who glassed a fireman in a town centre club has walked free from court.

Deryl Nightingale smashed the pint pot into the face of his victim who had stepped in to try and calm a disagreement.

But after hearing how the 23-year-old had himself been the victim of an assault and was prone to over react if he felt threatened a judge imposed a community order.

Chris Smyth, prosecuting, told Swindon crown court that fire fighter Robert Harris had gone out with colleagues of Friday November 10, 2006.

After going greyhound racing they went first to Old Town before ending up in Yates's Wine Lodge in the town centre.

About half an hour after arriving there Mr Harris became aware of one of his friends taking with the defendant.

At first he thought it appeared to be a friendly conversation but then spotted Nightingale pushing his pal.

"He stood between them to try and calm things but then the defendant pushed him to the upper chest," Mr Smyth said.

"Feeling it was a provocative act and feeling under threat he moved towards the defendant who reacted by picking up a pint glass and striking Mr Harris with the glass once to the face."

He said Nightingale was then detained by the bouncers and was later arrested by the police who were called to the scene.

When he was questioned he claimed that he had been acting in self defence saying the other group had been the aggressors and he had felt threatened by them.

He claimed the victim had picked up a bottle and initially denied assaulting the victim only changing his plea on the morning of his trial.

Mr Smyth said he pleaded on the basis that he felt threatened and picked up the glass to make a pre-emptive strike.

He said he had been victim of an assault in the past and so reacted in a different way to other people.

Nightingale, of Saltash Road, Swindon, pleaded guilty to a charge of actual bodily harm.

As a result of the attack Mr Harris said he had been left with two permanent scars on his face and felt lucky his eye was not damaged by the glass.

Judge Douglas Field said "This is a serious matter; using a glass. In normal circumstances the reaction from a judge is to look at custody straight away but I have read a lot about you and I am satisfied that you could strongly benefit from the intervention of a think first programme and I am satisfied that you have expressed a high level of motivation to comply with that.

"I am particularly assisted by a long letter from a community psychiatric nurse. You are lucky that the injuries caused to your victim were light."

He put him on an 18 month supervision order, told him to complete a think first programme and pay £250 compensation.