Judge's "disbelief" that punches were in self-defence

Monday 09 March 2020

A man has received a suspended prison sentence after punching two men in the head, leaving one of them concussed after being hit several times on the ground.

Tommy Grice, 27, avoided an immediate prison sentence and was instead handed a two-year suspended sentence for assaulting two men.

Grice was in Harvey's Wine Bar at around 23:00 on 19 June 2019 when he overheard comments made by two men sat at the bar which he took exception to.

He got into an argument with them and "started to pester them to take the dispute outside".

One of the men got their coat and started walking out the door. Grice followed him and CCTV appeared to show him punch the man in the back of the head, knocking him to the ground. 

After a few minutes, both men came back inside and around 15 minutes later, Grice barged past the other complainant by the bar. They started arguing and the man who had been punched minutes earlier went to stand in between them. 

Grice then swung another punch at his head, knocking him to the ground for the second time. He then punched the other man to the ground and continued hitting him when he was on the floor, until a woman restrained him and got pushed into a table and chairs herself. 

Pictured: The second man suffered a concussion and was taken to the Emergency Department following the incident.

Defence Advocate Sam Steel said his client had no history of such violence and was of previously good character. 

He had moved to the island in 2017 as a painter and decorator and had immersed himself in the local community, volunteering and fundraising for several charitable causes. 

He has recently been out of work and receiving benefits due to his emotional wellbeing. 

It was a "one-off" incident after Grice had been drinking and the defendant had little recollection of the incident.

The second part of the assault, which happened inside the bar, saw Grice punch the first man to the ground "in self-defence" as he was being pushed and backed into a corner.

Advocate Steel and the Crown Prosecutor agreed that the punch was in self defence.

Judge Graeme McKerrell, on the other hand, interrupted Advocate Steel's submission in "disbelief".

Having watched the CCTV of the incident, he said: "That conclusion is in my view exceptionally generous."

That conclusion also meant his hands were tied to some degree in sentencing as he had to treat the incident inside the bar as an act of self defence. 

"The blow to the head outside was however clearly not in self-defence," he said. "[The incident inside the bar] was particularly violent and you were clearly giving as good as you got."

He reiterated his "surprise" at that judgement, but with that and the defendant's previous good character in mind, he decided on a suspended sentence as opposed to immediate custody. 

Pictured: Guernsey's court.