Mansfield duo punched and kicked drunk outside nightclub but didn’t start the violence
Two men who were backed up by three friends and door staff when they punched and kicked a drunk outside a Mansfield nightclub didn't start the violence, a court has heard.
Ryan Davis was smoking a cigarette outside The Cheeky Monkey, on Handley Arcade, in Mansfield, when his group were approached by the man, on February 23, said Nicole Baughan, prosecuting.
CCTV showed pushing and shoving breaking out and another member of their group trying to prevent matters from escalating.
But Davis, aged 33, walked around him and threw one punch before Daniel Fretwell hit him again and hurled him to the ground.
Davis kicked him when he tried to get up. Their victim wasn't willing to give a statement to the police and didn't appear to be injured, Ms Baughan added.
She said Davis has a number of previous convictions and was last in trouble in 2017 for shoplifting but has no relevant previous convictions since July 2016.
Mark Stocks, mitigating, said Davis used the sole of his foot to push his victim down on the floor rather than kick him.
“The victim was clearly intoxicated and had been causing issues with another group earlier on,” he said.
“He became abusive. There was a certain element of provocation. The defendant and his group didn’t start and promulgate the violence.
“He (Davis) certainly shouldn’t have responded in that way. The victim was not targeted. He provoked the incident.”
Neil Taylor, mitigating, said Fretwell was recalled to prison after the assault and will be a serving prisoner until November.
“He isn’t somebody who is heavily convicted,” he said. “He initially stood back. His victim had been trying to get in and door staff had turned him away.”
Mr Taylor said attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism affect Fretwell’s impulse control so “he doesn't think before he acts.”
Davis, of Byron Road, Annesley, and Fretwell, 26, of Ladybrook Lane, Mansfield, admitted using threatening behaviour when they appeared at Mansfield Magistrates Court, on Tuesday.
Davis was ordered to carry out 50 hours of unpaid work and pay £85 costs with a £114 surcharge. Fretwell received a four week sentence to be served at the same time as he is locked up.