'Disgraceful' drunk to pay attacked taxi driver £1k

Aaron Kendall wounded a taxi driver in Newcastle (file photo)

A drunk reveller who punched a taxi driver to the ground in a "disgraceful" and unprovoked attack has been ordered to pay £1,000 in compensation.

Aaron Kendall, 24, had been drinking in Newcastle's Bigg Market when he injured the driver who had stopped to let him use a cash machine, the city's Crown Court heard.

The victim was left with a 1in (3cm)-long scar across his forehead and said the assault had left him afraid at work.

Lorry driver Kendall, from Newcastle, admitted unintentional wounding and was jailed for one year suspended for 18 months.

Kendall was intoxicated when he approached the taxi in the Bigg Market shortly before 03:00 BST on 14 April last year, prosecutor Kevin Wardlaw said.

The driver agreed to take Kendall to Walbottle but they had to stop for the defendant to get cash, the court was told.

While in the car, Kendall asked the driver to "please get me out of town" as he did not feel safe following an argument with someone else, the court heard, with the driver telling him not to worry.

'Gratuitous violence'

The driver got out of his car at the cash machine on George Street to help his passenger, Mr Wardlaw said, but after withdrawing money Kendall turned and punched the man hard in the face knocking him to the ground.

Kendall then swung at the man again but missed before chasing him round the car shouting "come on", the court heard.

The driver managed to escape in his car and returned to the Bigg Market to get medical treatment at an ambulance stationed there.

In a statement read to the court, the driver said he had been unable to work for a week and when he did return, he was afraid of being attacked again.

Recorder Ian Mullarkey said it was an "utterly disgraceful" and "unprovoked" attack using "gratuitous violence" on someone providing a public service .

He said Kendall, who had previous convictions for being drunk and disorderly, "plainly" had a problem of becoming aggressive when drinking.

But he said there was a realistic prospect of rehabilitation so the prison term could be suspended, although he warned Kendal he had "come incredibly close" to being jailed.

Kendall, of Kirkwood Drive in Kenton, must also complete 150 hours unpaid work, abide by a three-month curfew between 21:00 an 06:00 and pay the driver £1,000 in compensation at a rate of £100 a month.