Blackpool: From the courts 10-07-17

Carl Kemp, 28, assault, criminal damage, driving with due care and attention, driving with no insurance, failing to stop after an accident

A woman was hit with a travel iron in a Blackpool hotel as a couple rowed.

Carl Kemp then fled from the Norbreck Castle Hotel, jumped into his girlfriend’s mother’s Mercedes and crashed it into a wall in the resort’s Guildford Avenue.

Kemp, a 28-year-old former soldier, of Peregrine Road, Stockport, who has a job as a maintenance worker at a factory, denied assault but was found guilty of the offence after a trial.

He pleaded guilty to damaging his girlfriend’s phone, driving without due care and attention and insurance plus failing to stop after an accident.

He was sentenced to a 12 months community order with up to 40 days rehabilitation to be supervised by the probation officer, ordered to do 30 hours unpaid work, had eight motoring penalty points put on his driving licence and told to pay a total of £1,304 compensation for the victim her damaged phone and insurance excess.

Magistrates also put him on a 12 months restraining order which bans him from contacting the victim.

Prosecutor, Pam Smith, said the couple were staying in Blackpool on February 19, when they rowed and both said nasty things.

Kemp threw her mobile phone against the wall and as he threw it, knocked over several items including a travel iron, which flew across the bed hitting his girlfriend on the hip, causing reddening of the skin.

He panicked and fled and was hit in the face by a hotel security officer who said the defendant was being aggressive.

Kemp then got in his girlfriend’s mother’s car, panicked and drove off. He then crashed into a wall on Guildford Avenue, before abandoning the vehicle and later catching a train home.

Steven Townley, defending, said his client had not intentionally hit his girlfriend with the iron but had been reckless when he knocked it into her.

The argument had blown up out of nowhere and he had acted entirely out of character. Kemp said he had immediately apologised to his girlfriend.

Here is Friday’s round-up of cases at Blackpool Magistrates Court 07-07-17

Darren Fisher, 41, assault

A couple fell out and their relationship finished the day they were moving in together.

Darren Fisher ended up hitting his girlfriend on the forehead with a piece of wood from a wardrobe leaving her with a large lump and an abrasion.

His girlfriend also said he trapped her in the bedroom leaving her unable to open the door so she was forced to throw a dumbbell through the window, smashing it and escaping.

Fisher, 41, of Hornby Road, Blackpool, denied assault but was found guilty of the offence after a trial.

He was sentenced to a 12 month community order with up to 20 days rehabilitation to be supervised by the probation service, ordered to do 50 hours unpaid work for the community and told to pay £100 compensation with £200 costs plus £85 victims’ surcharge.

Fisher was also put on a 12 months restraining order banning him from contact with the complainant.

Prosecutor, Sarah Perkins, told magistrates that Fisher’s girlfriend said they had been in a relationship for about three years. On February 27 she was moving into his address on Hornby Road.

They had some drinks and there was an argument in the bedroom. She said he hit her across the forehead with a piece of wood from the wardrobe, before blocking the door leaving her so scared she broke a window to get out.

Allan Cobain, defending, said the trial had concluded that Fisher did not deliberately hit the victim with the piece of wood but had been reckless.

Fisher had told her he wanted a dehumidifier she had brought to the address moved out. He started hitting at it with a piece of wood from a flat-pack wardrobe and the wood connected with her as she leaned over the dehumidifier.

Mr Cobain added: “He said he felt very provoked and lost his temper.

“He accepts he should not have been waving around a piece of wood.

“Needless to say they did not move in together.

“He wants nothing more to do with her.”

Jack Heaton, 22, failing to comply with community order

A man failed to do payback work because he was suffering from depression, a court was told.

Jack Heaton, a 22-year-old telesales worker, of Coveway Avenue, Layton, pleaded guilty to failing to comply with a community order.

He was sentenced to do an extra 20 hours unpaid work for the community and ordered to pay £60 costs.

Cheryl Crawford, prosecuting for the probation service, said Heaton had been sentenced to 200 hours unpaid work for the community in April for failing to provide a breath specimen and resisting a police officer.

He failed to keep two appointments with his probation officer between May and June but did not provide evidence to excuse his absences.

On one occasion he said he would provide a sick note when he returned from a visit to his aunt in Benidorm. He still had 192 hours of his unpaid work to complete.

Stephen Duffy, defending, said it was Heaton’s first breach of the order. He had been diagnosed with depression which was so bad he could not continue with his telesales job and he was prescribed anti-depressants.

Heaton did not have a sick note he could send to the probation service because he did not sign on for benefits.

David Torr, 25, indecent exposure

A man dropped his pyjama bottoms in front of a woman police constable and her colleague who had been called to his address several times because of disturbances.

David Torr, who had been drinking vodka, then told the female officer: “Here have some of this.”

Torr, a 25-year-old father-of-one, of Iddon Court, Blackpool, appeared at court via the video link from Preston Prison and pleaded guilty to indecently exposing himself.

He was sentenced to a two year conditional discharge and ordered to pay £100 compensation to the woman officer with £20 victims’ surcharge.

Prosecutor, Pam Smith, said police were called several times to Torr’s home because of disturbances.

When he exposed himself to the woman officer on January 28, she left the room feeling shocked and disgusted.

The officer said Torr had been smiling at her at the time as though trying to intimidate her.

Brett Chappell, defending, said the catalyst for all Torr’s offending was alcohol and he was currently in custody awaiting sentence on an offence of domestic violence.

Mr Chappell added: “When he dropped his pants, he got no sexual gratification from it. He has no previous similar convictions.”

The offence was completely out of character and he says it will never happen again.”

“When I informed him of the gravity and seriousness of the offence and that he could be put on the Sex Offenders Register his jaw dropped.”