A 40-year-old man has been sentenced to 11 years in prison after shooting a police sergeant three times in the face.
On November 20, 2020, PS Dave Cayton responded to an incident in Neuville Way, Desborough, after a 999 call was made reporting a male at the address who was armed with various weapons.
Upon arrival at the scene, PS Cayton made his way into the address and quickly found the suspect.
As PS Cayton began to walk up the stairs, Marshall Coe appeared and was armed with a pistol that fired metal pellets.
Before he could turn away, Coe shot PS Cayton three times in the face.
“Everything slowed down,” recalls PS Cayton. “The best way I can explain it is the fight or flight choice, and I genuinely believe you don’t get to choose which one your body decides on.
“At that exact moment, I think that’s where the benefit of being a police officer and the training you receive and the morals that you have, come into play.
“So my body’s reaction was, I need to fight, I need to defend myself and I need to protect the other people in this property.”
Despite the pain he was experiencing, PS Cayton tried to disarm Coe, who also pulled out a knife.
PS Cayton deployed his taser, and Coe backed down, at which point PS Cayton placed him under arrest.
At this moment, other officers arrived at the scene, and PS Cayton was rushed to hospital.
Coe was subsequently charged with wounding with intent and being in possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.
On 26th May, at Northampton Crown court, Coe was convicted and handed an extended sentence of 11 years in prison, with the custodial part of that extended sentence set at eight years and eight months.
PS Cayton thankfully recovered from his physical injuries but the scars on his face remain to this day.
At the end of the court case, His Honour Judge Rupert Mayo recommended PS Cayton for “the highest possible commendation” from the Chief Constable.
Chief Constable Nick Adderley, said:
“Dave is an incredible police officer and I was so proud to hear of Judge Mayo’s comments regarding his bravery – commendations such as these are only handed out in very special circumstances which really demonstrates the level of courage Dave displayed that day during this absolutely horrific incident.
“I would walk through the gates of hell for my police officers and I will do everything in my power to protect them, including making sure that every instance of violence against them is pursued through the courts.
“When I heard about this incident, it chilled me to my core and it mirrors the rising levels of violence we are seeing against police officers across the country as a whole.
“This is why I will never apologise for being the first police force in the country to arm all frontline officers with a Taser and that rollout is going well with all frontline officers now trained in the use of Taser across Northamptonshire Police.
“This was a top investigation by our CID and eleven years is a great sentence.
“It is also a real example that if you assault any of my police officers, we will come after you with the full force of the law behind us and do everything in our power to put you behind bars where you belong.”
Scroll down to watch the interview with PS Cayton.
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Sgt Cayton is the personification of a police officer who runs towards danger not away. This offender, Coe, attempted to murder the officer with a gun and knife, he deserved life imprisonment.