Man locked up for two years after breaking paramedic’s jaw
West Midlands ambulance bosses have welcomed a two-year custodial sentence for a man who broke the jaw of a paramedic who had gone to help him.
It was the first time that body-worn camera footage was provided to the police in the West Midlands region as part of an investigation into an assault of a member of the ambulance service.
At Worcester Crown Court on Wednesday, Henry Steven Allun Grain, 20, of Worcester Road, Leominster was sentenced to two years in a youth offenders’ institution after earlier pleading guilty to assault causing grievous bodily harm with intent.
The incident happened at 9pm outside Shooters Bar in Leominster on Friday, March 4, 2022.
Paramedic Steve Raven, who was assaulted, said: “We had been tasked to a report of an unresponsive man in a public house.
“After initial treatment, we took him out to the ambulance where he became aggressive, so we activated the ambulance CCTV system and our body-worn cameras.”
Grain then punched Mr Raven in the face, breaking his jaw. He also damaged one window and broke one of the ambulance door hinges, taking the vehicle off the road for repairs.
Mr Raven said: “I love my job but this incident has had a profound impact on me. As well as the time for my bone to heal I have been left with facial numbness and hearing loss. It has also affected me psychologically – I get very nervous when I attend similar situations.
"This was an assault on someone who had gone there to help a patient and ended up off work for weeks, robbing the public of a paramedic at a time when it is incredibly challenged.
“When I started this job in 2015, the thought that I would need to wear a body-worn camera for my protection would have seemed absurd I feel sure that being able to capture what happened made all the difference when it came to the prosecution and I would urge all my colleagues to use the system every time they go out, you just never know when you might need it.”
Nathan Hudson, West Midlands ambulance Ambulance Service emergency services operations delivery director, said: “I welcome this sentence as it shows how seriously the court took the violence against Steve.
“The impact that violence against our staff has on their lives can be profound: we have seen cases where colleagues are left scared to be alone with a patient; some get flashbacks and other mental health impacts.
“These often long-term effects are on top of the recovery that is needed for their physical injuries that may stop them being able to work for days, weeks or months.
“Violence is not acceptable and we all need to work together to stop it happening.”
PC Harriet Wilson-Hill, of West Mercia Police, said: “The outcome of this case should serve as a reminder that assaulting an emergency service employee will not go unpunished. I welcome Grain’s sentence and I hope that it reassures our community of our how seriously we and the court take this type of crime and that they will hand down a custodial sentence representative of the severity of the offence.”
