Attack warden spared jail term

A traffic warden who jabbed a motorist in the eye and then punched him has been spared jail by a judge.

David Jones, 40, was found guilty at Liverpool Magistrates Court last month of assault causing actual bodily harm.

He was sentenced to 240 hours community service, a two-month night-time home curfew order and ordered to pay £300 compensation to James Wardle.

Sentencing him, Deputy District Judge, Alan Jones, said he did not believe Jones was "by nature a violent person."

The court heard that Jones had attacked Mr Wardle after the latter sounded his horn at him to warn him to move out of the way as he left a Liverpool car park in November 2002.

'Could have blinded me'

Jones swore at him and when Mr Wardle got out of his vehicle to remonstrate, Jones jabbed him in his eye with the aerial of his walkie-talkie, partially dislodging Mr Wardle's glass eye.

This must have been one of those classic moments of madness, hopefully one of those once in a lifetime events that will not happen again Deputy District Judge, Alan Jones

Mr Wardle, whose wife Maria and five-year-old son were in the car, claimed he tried to walk away, but Jones then punched him in the side of the face, knocking out a dental filling and leaving a bruise.

Mr Wardle of Knowsley Village told magistrates: "I felt disgusted. If it had been a person in the street it would have been bad, but for a traffic warden, I was amazed.

"He is lucky that it is a false eye because otherwise he could have blinded me."

Sentencing Jones, Deputy district judge Alan Jones told him: "There is ample precedent for a court to use custody in a case like this, in which a person serving the public assaults one of those he is supposed to be serving.

"However it is the duty of the court to look at the individual circumstances of the case.

"You are not by nature a violent person. This must have been one of those classic moments of madness, hopefully one of those once in a lifetime events that will not happen again."