Man jailed for 12 months for throwing drink can at police

Eden Reboul referred to his actions during the protest in Weymouth as "the biggest wake-up call in my life"

A 27-year-old man has been sentenced to 12 months in prison after pleading guilty to violent disorder during a protest in Dorset.

Bournemouth Crown Court heard that Eden Reboul, from Weymouth, threw a can of drink at a row of police officers.

About 400 anti-immigration protesters gathered on the Esplanade on 4 August, along with about 200 Stand Up to Racism demonstrators.

Reboul told police he had not taken his medication for ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) which made him irrational.

The court heard that the defendant had also accepted a conditional caution from police for an unconnected incident of unlawful violence later on the same day.

His defence barrister said Reboul denied being a racist, did not have views on immigration and had "got caught up" in the protest that was happening near his home.

In a letter to the judge, Reboul said: "I am so very sorry for my stupid actions, I have never been so ashamed in my life."

"It's been the biggest wake-up call in my life,” he added.

Judge Robert Pawson said there needed to be a deterrent sentence and that public violence "has no place in a society like ours".

"It's easy to mischaracterise your behaviour as just throwing an empty can but when you involved yourself with others in mass disorder, it's the conduct of the group taken together which is of central importance, whatever an individual's acts may be," Judge Pawson added.

"Violence in public rarely, if ever, changes minds, it does little more than feed resentment and resistance."