A judge has told a Welshpool man that he should "just lock him up now" after he was caught on CCTV punching and kicking a defenceless man several times in the head - but will hear more evidence before deciding whether to jail him.
Recorder Jason MacAdam decided "with a great deal of hesitation" to delay Gareth Clarkson's sentencing hearing to give him another opportunity to speak to the probation service after missing a pre-sentence report appointment despite breaching court orders on several occasions.
The 21-year-old from Bron Gungrog, Gallowstree Bank, pleaded guilty on July 19 to inflicting grievous bodily harm on Mark Elliott while out in Shrewsbury on December 12, 2021.
"Everything I have read about you led me to conclude that I was going to lock you up today and lock you up for a number of years,” Recorder MacAdam said at Shrewsbury Crown Court on Friday, August 18.
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"I’ve got a great deal of sympathy for anybody who loses a parent and it happened to you when you were young, but you would have heard people like [defence barrister] Miss Roberts say that time and time again.
"You’re an adult; it’s time to behave like one. You’re a grown man. I’m giving you a chance. This offending is so serious that the rule of thumb for kicking a vulnerable man on the floor is that you are sent to prison. You’re not out of the woods yet.
"You treat this as your last week in the community for some time and bring a bag next week. The courts have no desire to send you to prison but this is outrageous behaviour. You can kiss goodbye to the rest of your 20s. It’s down to you to sort yourself out.
"Even if I send you to prison next week you need to continue sorting yourself out because it will only get longer and longer. Unless I know you’ve engaged fully the starting point is prison and for some considerable time. Do not think for one moment that you have avoided prison, come back with a bag.
"I will need a lot of persuading not to send you to prison. You will need to man up and deal with it.”
Clarkson was ordered to return to Shrewsbury Crown Court for sentencing on Friday, August 25.
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