A 45-year-old man has been sent to prison after being found guilty of assaulting a paramedic.
William Stevens, from West Street in Leominster, was sentenced at Kidderminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday 1st May.
He received 20 weeks for assaulting an emergency worker, four weeks for racially abusing an emergency worker and two weeks for criminal damage.
Stevens was arrested on 1st December 2019 after the police and ambulance service were called to some residential flats in West Street after reports of concern for the welfare of one of the occupants at the address.
While dealing with the incident, Stevens grabbed one of the paramedics by their throat and punched them in the face causing facial injuries.
Stevens was taken back to the police station after being arrested at the scene and racially abused one of the detention officers while in the Hereford custody suite.
Chief Inspector Ross Jones said:
“This case shows that people who assault officers or paramedics will be arrested, investigated and put before the court.
“West Mercia Police will not tolerate attacks on emergency service personnel, and I welcome the prison sentence handed down.”
Assistant Chief Ambulance Officer, Nathan Hudson, said:
“No-one should ever get injured because they were assaulted at work, yet that is exactly what happened in this case. What is particularly appalling is that the paramedic was there to help a patient in need but got attacked while trying to do so.
“All too often, ambulance staff who have been assaulted feel let down by the judicial system, so I am pleased that the Magistrate took such a tough stance on this occasion.
“We know the public are outraged every time something like this happens, so hopefully such tough action will be replicated by other courts and also serve as a warning; we will always push for those who attack our staff to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
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