A father-of-five who carried out a violent attack on a taxi driver has been spared jail over concerns it would have a "harmful impact" on his kids. Jermaine Preston kicked his victim "like a football" in the assault in a row over the fare.
The 41-year-old punched, kicked and stamped on the taxi driver following a night out in Manchester city centre. Manchester Crown Court was told how Preston had booked a taxi from Mainline private hire with his partner and another woman at 6.30am on September 4 to take him home.
Preston, who was both drunk and under the influence of drugs, was repeatedly told he could not smoke. However the taxi driver did allow him to vape in his vehicle, said prosecutor Philip Hall.
According to the Manchester Evening News things took a turn for the worse after the defendant had agreed to pay an additional fee to drop off one of the women. She became aggressive after "mistakenly believing" the driver was asking for extra money.
The driver had stopped his car and told them to calm down only for Preston, who was sitting in the front seat, to launch a violent attack on the helpless victim who could do little as he was strapped in his seat.
Once he managed to free himself and flee Preston chased him and punched the back of his head until he fell to the floor. And while on the ground the attack continued with the victim being repeatedly kicked "like a football" to his facem head and body.
He was also stamped on and while face down on the floor Preston knelt on his back and continued to punch the back of the taxi driver's head. The defendant then returned to the taxi and began to search it for valuables.
As he carried out the search the driver walked back to his car and a second wave of the attack began. Preston punched his victim to the floor once more and 'straddled him once again' as he aimed more punches to the head, the court was told.
It was during this second exchange that Preston himself suffered an injury which left blood come from a head wound.
The court heard a resident was woken by the taxi driver 'screaming for help', said Mr Hall. The resident later told police the victim looked 'really scared' as he was being pursued.
The householder said she saw Preston repeatedly kicking the taxi driver to the stomach while he was on the ground and was 'surprised' the victim managed to get up. She told police the attack was 'horrendous and disgusting to watch'.
Police arrested Preston at the scene but told them he had been attacked first. He handed the driver's phone which he had stolen to officers and later, while being treated for his own injuries in hospital, he was also found to have the driver's wallet, bank card and £45 cash.
Preston told police in interview he had taken the items 'out of frustration'. he said he had intended to throw them away but had 'forgotten'.
The driver was taken by ambulance to hospital were he was treated for bruises and soreness to his head and body. A CT scan showed no serious damage and he was discharged later that day.
In a victim personal statement read out in court, the driver said: "I've been a taxi driver for four years. I've never experienced such fear and violence in my place of work before."
He said he accepted 'a clear risk' picking up fares who were drunk or high on drugs. He added: "However, when I come to work I do not expect to be put in fear of my life and losing my livelihood." He said he felt he had to 'lie' to his family to play the attack down and branded it a 'disgusting crime'.
The court heard Preston had 13 sets of convictions for 28 offences. These included including drink-driving and assault.
Ronan Maguire, defending, said at first his client had been the 'peacemaker' but was 'entirely to blame' for the violence which followed. He said his client had faced 'very difficult circumstances' in his home life following the death of his mother and then his nephew around the time of the assault.
Preston himself had been 'struck to the head' during the incident although this was 'perhaps understandable in the circumstances', said Mr Maguire. The barrister said it had been his client's first criminal conviction since 2013 as he urged the judge to suspend any prison sentence.
Mr Maguire said his client was 'heavily involved' in the care of his five children. "There's no question that were he not present that would have a significant impact upon them," he said.
Judge Timothy Smith told the defendant: "No taxi driver performing the service they do for those requiring journeys into and out of Manchester deserves to be treated in this way. They are providing a public service to you and others and to that extent they need to be protected from those who would threaten violence on them."
But the judge noted that his last previous conviction was when he was 'considerably younger' and he had showed previously he could 'keep out of trouble'.
He said the crime was aggravated by his "drinking to excess" and "substance abuse" on the night. But he said "on balance" an immediate term of imprisonment was not required, noting the defendant had a number of children living in "somewhat difficult circumstances".
"I'm satisfied that the imposition of an immediate custodial sentence would have an immediate and potentially harmful upon them," said Judge Smith.
Preston, of Hawthorn Avenue in Radcliffe, showed no reaction as he was handed a 16 month prison sentence suspended for 18 months. He had earlier admitted assault and theft.
