Soldier stamped on reveller's head in Telford nightclub
A soldier punched a man to the ground and stamped on his head after he saw him dancing with his girlfriend at a nightclub.
Michael Scott was fined £1,000 for the attack and ordered to pay his victim £500 in compensation after magistrates heard it was still too early to tell if the victim would be permanently scarred.
Prosecuting, Mrs Kate Price said the victim was a work colleague of Scott's girlfriend and had met them on a night out at Pussycats Nightclub in Wellington on February 22. Mrs Price told Telford Magistrates Court that Scott, 22, had "come from nowhere" and punched the victim in the head causing him to fall to floor. He then raised his foot and stamped on him just above his right eye.
The victim was taken to the Princess Royal Hospital for treatment.
Scott, of Clay Road, Caister-on-Sea, Great Yarmouth, pleaded guilty to one charge of assault by beating when he appeared in court yesterday.
For Scott, Steven Meredith said the defendant had served in Afghanistan and Cyprus during the two and a half years he had been in the Army.
He said that while Scott admitted the assault he told a different version of events leading up to it and claimed "he saw red" after seeing the victim lift up his girlfriend's skirt as they danced.
The court was told that Scott was ashamed of his actions. A spokesman for the Army told that court that Scott had behaved completely out of character and was the last person he expected to see getting involved in a fight.
The court was told that Scott would also be punished by the military both financially and with working penalties for bringing the Army's reputation into disrepute.
Magistrates said that because Scott's training and travel made him unsuitable for a community punishment and unpaid work they would impose "a hefty fine".
As well as the fine and compensation, Scott was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £100 and £85 prosecution costs.
