A man who assaulted two police officers is ‘getting the support he needs’ after jumping off a car park.
Corey Gunn, 24, pleaded guilty to two counts of assaulting an emergency worker when he appeared at Swindon Magistrates’ Court this morning (Wednesday).
Pauline Lambert, prosecuting, said the offences were committed on 1 September last year – whilst the defendant was serving a suspended sentence.
Police were called to reports of a male kicking a door in Burbage Road, Penhill, at around 3.30am.
On their arrival, Gunn told the officers to “f**k off” before fleeing the scene. Two officers proceeded to chase him on foot and detained him 300 metres away in Farndale Close.
He screamed and shouted as officers attempted to place him into a police van before kicking PC Andrew Iwaniszyn – pinning his finger between the defendant’s shoe and van door. The officer suffered a small cut to his finger as a result of the kick.
PC Iwaniszyn, in his statement, said that “the aggression and violence shown [by Gunn] was out of proportion”. He added that he was “lucky to escape with minor injuries”.
His colleague PC Samantha Martin was also kicked but she didn’t suffer any injuries.
Emma Thacker, defending, said the police knew her client has significant mental health difficulties – including ADHD, anger management issues, seizures and a potential brain injury.
She said the officers would have been aware of him and know that he sometimes reacts poorly in certain situations; they know that there has been a decline in his mental health.
Ms Thacker said Gunn “holds his hands up”, stating that he was “not in a good place” at the time. She told of how officers on patrol found him at the bottom of a multi-storey car park in Farnsby Street in November last year.
She said it was understood that he had jumped in an attempt to end his life – sustaining serious injuries including leg breaks, a snapped pelvis and internal injuries. She told the court that there are “too many [injuries] to go through with you today”.
Ms Thacker added that since the incident, Gunn has “gained a massive amount of support” and said it was “horrendous that this kind of thing has to happen for someone to get the support they need”.
She said he’s a “troubled young man”, adding that he has a supportive family and confirmed that his sister was in attendance at the back of the courtroom.
The magistrates found it unjust to activate his suspended sentence due to his health and injuries and the fact he could lose the much-needed support has now has in place.
The chair of the bench said: “If you continue to offence, the next bench might not be so lenient… you’ve got to learn you can’t do that.”
Gunn was fined £50 and told to pay PC Iwaniszyn £100 compensation and PC Martin £50 compensation.
