Man with knife spat at Pcs

Luke Murphy was given a suspended sentence after Shrewsbury Crown Court heard he was aggressive towards emergency workers who came to his aid when he was bitten by his girlfriend's dog.

The 30-year-old admitted two charges of affray and two of battery.

Lynette McClement, prosecuting, told the court Murphy called the emergency services on the late evening of February 25 this year, after being bitten by a dog belonging to his girlfriend Lisa Davies at her home in Little Hereford, near Ludlow.

Police attended but left the house after paramedics arrived. However, officers were called back shortly before 1am when the paramedics activated their emergency call system.

They reported that Murphy was unhappy with their assessment that he did not need to be transported to hospital by ambulance, and had left the room and returned waving two kitchen knives.

Ms McClement said: “One paramedic believed he might self harm while the other thought he might harm them. One of the knives was described as a bread knife with quite a significant blade.”

The paramedics left the house and when police arrived soon after Ms Davies told them Murphy still had a knife.

He was at the top of the stairs acting “animated and aggressive,” said Ms McClement. He then spat down the stairs, hitting one officer in the face.

Murphy then held knives in front of him and said: “If you come upstairs, watch what happens”.

Aggressively

He was tasered and taken to hospital for treatment, where he continued to behave aggressively towards police and hospital staff. He spat at another officer, hitting their stab vest, at which point a spit guard was put on him.

Ms McClement said Murphy had a string of previous convictions, beginning in 2005, including burglary, theft, assault, criminal damage, affray and drink-driving.

Mr Jamie Scott, defending, said Murphy suffered from Asperger’s and did not remember the incident as he had been drinking alcohol and had mistakenly taken his girlfriend’s medication.

He said Murphy had made progress since the incident, including enrolling on an Open University degree, cutting down his alcohol consumption and completing a drink-drive awareness course.

“He acknowledges his behaviour was wrong and has taken considerable steps to remedy it and make amends,” said Mr Scott.

Judge Anthony Lowe sentenced Murphy, of Temple Meadow, Little Hereford, to eight months in prison, suspended for two years. He must complete 25 rehabilitation activity days.

Judge Lowe said: “The court will always have to punish, and punish severely, anybody who takes up knives in any situation where aggression is being shown.

“The court will always do what it has to do to protect members of the services who are doing their duty, in this case the paramedics and police who were only there because you called them.”