Teenager sentenced for attack that left officer with shocking injuries
A TEENAGER who inflicted horrific injuries on a woman police officer when he punched her so hard in the face she had to undergo emergency surgery has been dealt with by the courts.
The 24-year-old police officer was punched to the nose by the 16-yearold from Swadlincote, who cannot be identified due to his age.
The incident happened in September last year and now the teenager has been sentenced in court.
He must complete a 12-month community service order and was ordered to pay £600 compensation to the officer.
At an earlier hearing he had pleaded guilty to a charge of inflicting grievous bodily harm to the police constable.
Leicestershire police say it “acknowledges” the sentence handed out by Leicester Magistrates’ Court and hoped the youngster will do more to atone for his crime.
The officer had been carrying out her duties in the Ashby area on September 12 last year when she helped with carrying out a search of the youth who had been detained by other officers in Burton Road due to concerns about his behaviour.
The injuries left the officer, who has not been named, needing emergency surgery and stitches. She had to take sick leave for three months as a result of the attack. She is still awaiting further surgery now as the injuries have left her struggling to breathe properly through her nose.
The officer was taken to Burton’s Queen’s Hospital where it was found she had suffered from a broken nose, a broken septum, a deep laceration and tear to the left side of her nose and nostril, significant swelling and bruising. She had to undergo emergency surgery to try to fix her nose and also had to have six internal stitches and 11 external stitches to the nose.
She is now awaiting further surgery as she is unable to breathe through her right nostril and has limited breathing through her left nostril. She also has exposed cartilage in her nostrils as a result of the injuries caused.
Inspector Rich Jackson, commander for North West Leicestershire, said: “This was a shocking and vicious attack on an officer doing her job to protect others. The photographs of our officer’s awful injuries chilled all who saw them.
“We acknowledge the court’s decision of a community order but we strongly hope the young man, who pleaded guilty, will choose to do more to atone for his crime and start over. Attacks on police officers are simply not acceptable. We must protect our protectors.”
“Full support has been and remains in place for the police officer who has bravely shared her story to raise awareness of an issue which needs to be stopped.
“It is not acceptable for anyone to be attacked and assaulted in their job and we will not tolerate this happening to our officers. Action will be taken and we will ensure anyone who commits this offence is brought before the courts.”
This was a shocking and vicious attack on an officer doing her job to protect others.
Inspector Rich Jackson