A Leominster man who attacked a paramedic leaving him with serious injuries, has been jailed.
Henry Grain, who is 20 years old and from Worcester Road, Leominster, has been sentenced to two years in a youth offenders’ institution after he assaulted a paramedic so severely he broke their jaw.
During the incident, which happened at around 21:00 hours outside Shooters Bar in Leominster on Friday, 4 March 2022, Grain also damaged the ambulance that was sent to take him to the hospital.
As a result of his damaging the ambulance, it was taken out of service to be repaired.
Grain pleaded guilty to the charges of grievous bodily harm and two counts of criminal damage and was sentenced on Tuesday, 31 January at Worcester Crown Court.
The incident was the first time that body-worn camera footage was provided to the police by the West Midlands Ambulance service as part of an investigation into an assault of a member of the ambulance service.
Paramedic Steve Raven, who was assaulted, said:
“We had been tasked to a report of an unresponsive man in a public house.
“After initial treatment, we took him out to the ambulance where he became aggressive, so we activated the ambulance CCTV system and our body worn cameras.”
“I love my job, but this incident has had a profound impact on me.
“As well as the time for my bone to heal I have been left with facial numbness and hearing loss. It has also affected me psychologically – I get very nervous when I attend similar situations.
“Often, we don’t feel that the law provides us with enough protection, but I was pleased that the judge, in his summing up, was quite strong in his disgust at what Grain did.
“He understood that this was an assault on someone who had gone there to help a patient and ended up off work for weeks, robbing the public of a paramedic at a time when it is incredibly challenging.
“When I started this job in 2015, the thought that I would need to wear a body-worn camera for my protection would have seemed absurd, but I am so glad that both the vehicle and our staff have that option.
“I feel sure that being able to capture what happened made all the difference when it came to the prosecution and I would urge all my colleagues to use the system every time they go out, you just never know when you might need it.”
According to the National Health Service (NHS), violence and aggression against ambulance workers is a growing concern, and reports of such incidents are rising.
To ensure the safety of ambulance workers, the NHS has implemented various measures, such as training programs and safety equipment, to reduce the risk of violence and aggression.
WMAS Emergency Services Operations Delivery Director, Nathan Hudson, said:
“I welcome this sentence as it shows how seriously the court took the violence against Steve.
“Ambulance staff are there to help people in their hour of need. We know that the vast majority of the public find violence against our staff to be abhorrent.
“The impact that violence against our staff has on their lives can be profound: we have seen cases where colleagues are left scared to be alone with a patient; some get flashbacks and other mental health impacts.
“These often long-term effects are on top of the recovery that is needed for their physical injuries that may stop them from being able to work for days, weeks or months.
“Violence is not acceptable and we all need to work together to stop it happening.”
PC Harriet Wilson-Hill, OIC, said:
“The outcome of this case should serve as a reminder that assaulting an emergency service employee will not go unpunished.
“I welcome Grain’s sentence and I hope that it reassures our community of our how seriously we and the Court take this type of crime and that they will hand down a custodial sentence representative of the severity of the offence.”
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Why is a 20 year old sent to a young offenders’ institution? He is 2 years into his majority. He can vote, buy alcohol (unfortunately), tobacco, get married and join the forces without parental permission. He can also have a bank account, borrow money and indeed be declared bankrupt. He is an adult, and a particularly nasty one at that.
He should be in an adult jail and serve the full 2 years, which seems much too short to me. As things stand, he will be out in around or year or even less. Will this be a sufficient deterrent? I very much doubt it. Young offenders’ institutions are quite nice, given that the idea is to rehabilitate children. This man is not a child. He committed an adult crime and should face an adult sentence.
I am pleased that the judge in this case realised that assaulting Ambulance Service Paramedics and causing damage to an ambulance is unacceptable, however considering the severity of the injury and the ongoing hearing loss the sentence given is very light. A two year sentence might have been just about acceptable for the damage to a vital ambulance especially as it had to be taken off the road thus making one less ambulance available for emergencies, but this Grain person also seriously injured an Ambulance Service Paramedic who went to his aid. Some people will say the Paramedic is paid to go into situations that could be potentially dangerous BUT NO THEY ARE NOT they rightly expect to be able to go home to their families without any injuries at the end of their shift. Ambulance Service Paramedics are there to save lives and the likes of Grain should not be allowed to get away with causing injury Grain should have received a much longer sentence instead of two years in a young offenders where he will almost certainly be out in under a year.
Sorry but that’s the way I feel you hurt someone who is there to help you then you should be locked up for a long time Sentencing Guidelines for the GBH alone is 5 years never mind the Criminal Damage to the Ambulance which is on top
Scum should have got at least five years no parole and another two for damages to the ambulance.
Should have got 30 yrs.he will be out in 6 months .
What an utter despicable waste of air this wicked subhuman scum bag is. But seriously youth offenders ? He should be in prison locked up for many years not softly softly catchy monkey youth offenders. No respect obviously not taught any morals or self awareness. Parents hold your head in shame you did a rotten job bringing up this piece of crap.