A man who tried to de-escalate a fracas between his married neighbours ended up repeatedly punching one of them in the head, a court heard.
45-year-old Luke Smith appeared before Swindon Magistrates’ Court this afternoon where he pleaded guilty to assaulting Martin Vellenoweth in the street last year.
Crown prosecutor Keith Ballinger said that on 6 September Mr Vellenoweth and his wife had been having a verbal altercation outside the defendant’s home in Brickham Road, Devizes.
It’s said Smith left his address and went over to try and de-escalate the situation, but the husband and wife came together in a scuffle. The victim ended up on the floor, in a hedge.
Whilst Mr Vellenoweth was on the floor, Smith has leaned over and punched him in the back of the head several times causing cuts and redness.
Defending him, his solicitor said her client accepts he overstepped the mark, but claimed he had become aggressive as a result of the victim’s wife shouting abuse at his son. She said there was a level of goading from the victim in the case.
Interrupting district judge Joanna Dickens as she spoke, Smith shouted from the dock: “My day was fine until he started on me”, adding “he’s a bully boy” and that “he went to hit me first, it was self-defence”.
Ms Dickens asked his solicitor if he wanted to amend his plea to not guilty on the basis of self-defence, but she declined – stating her client had already made admissions to the offence.
She asked the court to look at imposing a community order, rather than a prison sentence and said Smith was currently furloughed with debts of around £16,000 making a fine an unreasonable ask. It was also heard that Smith has a recent conviction for battery.
Imposing a 12-month community order with 100 hours of unpaid work, Ms Dickens said: “Clearly things got out of hand and you’ve behaved aggressively.
Adding: “People can die with one punch… anything can happen. It’s really serious.”
Smith must also complete 10 rehabilitation activity days and pay £100 to victim Mr Vellenoweth.
