AN IPSWICH man who pinned a man to the ground and punched him eight or nine times leaving him with two black eyes and a broken tooth has been jailed for four months.
AN IPSWICH man who pinned a man to the ground and punched him eight or nine times leaving him with two black eyes and a broken tooth has been jailed for four months.
Robin Symister lost his temper after Aaron Firmin turned up at his house and wanted to see his daughter who was staying the night there.
There had been a heated exchange between Mr Firmin and Symister's partner, who was heavily pregnant, after she told him it wasn't possible for him to see his daughter.
It was at that stage that Symister had come from inside the house and there had been a scuffle during which Mr Firmin ended up on the ground outside the door.
Peter Gair, prosecuting, said that Symister had jumped on top of Mr Firmin and had pinned his arms with his knees and punched him eight or nine times.
Mr Firmin later went to hospital where he was found to have two black eyes, a broken tooth and bruised ribs.
Mr Gair said it would cost Mr Firmin £1,800 to have the broken tooth replaced.
Symister, 49, of Woodhouse Close, Ipswich admitted assaulting Mr Firmin causing him actual bodily harm.
Jailing him for four months Judge John Holt said: “Whatever the cause of the start of the violence you clearly got the upper hand and took advantage.”
He said that Mr Firmin's lips and one of his eyes didn't stop bleeding for two days after the attack. “This is serious and nasty violence,” said the judge.
Charles Myatt for Symister said “This was an argument brought to his door by another rather than him taking an argument to someone else.”
“Initially he was acting in a protective way to his eight month pregnant girlfriend who was getting a fair amount of verbal abuse from Mr Firmin,” said Mr Myatt.
“He was quietly watching television when he was suddenly confronted with this incident at his front door. He initially tried to calm the situation and when that didn't work his behaviour was excessive and over the top.”
He said Symister didn't accept attacking Mr Firmin while he was standing up and Mr Firmin was prone on the ground.
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