A DRUNKEN young man carried out an unprovoked attack on someone sitting in a church graveyard, kicking his head like a football.
Jareth Treslove was sentenced to six months in prison after pleading guilty to assaulting his victim causing him actual bodily harm, stealing his tobacco pouch and breaching two conditional discharges.
But the 23-year-old’s jail term was suspended for two years by a Judge at Warwick Crown Court who gave him the reprieve after hearing he was the carer for his sick mother, who suffered from sciatica and arthritis.
The court heard Treslove, of Eskdale in Brownsover, launched a ferocious Martin Adams in the grounds of St Andrew’s Church in the town centre in August last year after saying to him: “You upset my cousin”.
Mr Adams was punched repeatedly to the head and face, admitting he lost counts of the blows, and as he lay on the ground was kicked him to the head and body ‘like a football’, said prosecutor Nazneen Sultan.
Treslove rifled through his pockets and stole a pouch of tobacco before walking away to join a group of friends he had been with. An ambulance was called by a passer-by and Mr Adams was taken to hospital where he was treated for his injuries which included a 2.5cm cut to his forehead.
Miss Sultan added Treslove was subject to two conditional discharges for shoplifting offences at the time.
Nick Devine, defending, said his client had not touched alcohol since that night, had expressed regret and remorse, and had apologised.
Treslove was also ordered to do 120 hours of unpaid work.
Recorder Lance Ashworth QC told him: “You assaulted Martin Adams in circumstances where you were extremely drunk, and in circumstances where he did not provoke you in any way at all.
“There was no justification whatsoever for this assault, and you are perhaps fortunate he didn’t suffer greater injury. It appears this may just have been the event to make you realise you have to get your life back together again.”
