Eastwood ice-cream man fractured his enemy's jaw beside River Trent

An Eastwood ice-cream man who fractured his enemy’s jaw when they fought on the banks of the River Trent has been spared immediate custody, a court has heard.
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Neil Brice ‘didn't see eye to eye’ with a man who owns land on the Trent, said prosecutor Miles Gosnell, and there had been a number of disputes which came to a head on July 30, 2020.

The court heard Brice, aged 55, was in his father's boat when the land-owner swore and houted something like ‘what are you looking at?’

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Mr Gosnell said witnesses saw Brice try to defuse the situation before the other man threw a bottle at him.

Nottingham Crown CourtNottingham Crown Court
Nottingham Crown Court

A fight ensued in which Brice ‘got the better of his victim’ and, once he was on top of him, he repeatedly punched the man to the head.

He fractured the man’s jaw, which had to be reset under general anaesthetic, and left him with a swollen nose.

In a statement, his victim said the incident left him feeling ‘constantly on edge’ and he has not used his boat, which ‘was a big part of his life’, since.

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The court heard Brice, an ice-cream seller with one conviction from 2006, maintained he acted in self-defence.

Anna Soubry, mitigating, said the charge has been hanging over him for 20 months, but ‘he is more concerned about the effect this has had on his partner’.

She said: “He didn’t start this fight, but he certainly finished it. He fully accepts that he went too far.”

“He pleaded guilty and he is prepared for the sentence. At the end of the day, it is two grown men brawling in public and it is totally unacceptable.”

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Brice, of Lynncroft, Eastwood, admitted causing grievous bodily harm with intent, but was sentenced for a lesser charge.

Sentencing, Judge Steven Coupland told him: “It's plain there was no love lost between the two of you. If this had been an unprovoked attack, you would be going straight to prison. Happily for you, there were witnesses.”

He said Brice has caring responsibilities for his father and he ‘made no bones about what you did’.

Brice was jailed for nine months, suspended for a year, and ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work.

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