A SENIOR crown court judge has told a Welshpool man – "do your unpaid hours, stay off the booze or I will send you to jail" after he breached a suspended sentence.
Gareth Clarkson, 23 and of Bron Grungog, was late to his hearing at Mold Crown Court on Tuesday, September 3 for breaching a suspended sentence given this year at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court for assaulting a man in an attack that ended his RAF career.
Clarkson appeared in front of Judge Niclas Parry at Mold, who heard that probation has advised that the defendant not be sentenced for the breaches which he described as ‘unusual’.
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Judge Parry heard that Clarkson had multiple breaches as he had not attended two appointments with probation in the past.
However, from the dock, Clarkson produced a medical letter to show that two appointments – on July 4 and 18th – were missed because he was with his partner and their child at hospital.
Clarkson could not be given another alcohol monitoring order as he had previously been given the maximum 120 days by Judge Jason MacAdam in Manchester.
Judge Parry accepted the letter but said that he was placing the defendant ‘on notice’ with further unpaid hours and monthly court appearances to monitor him.
He said: “I’m going to mark this breach by adding 80 hours of unpaid work – it is that serious.
“You will appear in front of me every month and if you haven’t completed 30 hours of unpaid work or commit any other breach, I will send you down.
“The reasons for why I am taking this unusual approach of not activating the custody element of your suspended sentence is because I can’t ignore the probation officer who knows you well and also because you need to be there for your partner.
“You are no use to her on the lash and if I could give you a further alcohol abstinence I would."
“Everyone is expecting you to fail and that I will be sending you down in 28 days but it’s up to you.
He told him his next steps were "up to you", adding: “It will be me you see.”
Clarkson will be expected to return to Mold Crown Court on Tuesday, October 1 in front of Judge Parry.
He had originally been given a two-year sentence, suspended for the same period, for an attack on a man outside Shrewsbury Railway Station in December 2021, when he was aged 20.
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