Assaults on emergency service workers in Harrogate "will not be tolerated"
The newly elected Police Fire and Crime Commissioner is calling for those who assault emergency workers to face jail time
North Yorkshire’s Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner has told Greatest Hits Radio he "won't tolerate" those who assault Harrogate's emergency service workers.
Philip Allott is calling for those who are convicted of assaulting an emergency service worker to serve jail time and says he will personally write to judges and magistrates to recommend sentences.
He said: "These people are trying to protect the community and save lives. Why on earth would people want to assault them?
"So what will happen is when we get to the sentencing part I will write to the judges and magistrates and insisting on nothing less than a custodial sentence.
"For somebody just being drunk and lashing out at someone doing their job I have no tolerance whatsoever. It cannot be right that the perpetrator of that crime can essentially walk free with a suspended sentence and a fine."
He also wants the new legislation currently going through Parliament to come into force as soon as possible to provide protection for police officers and staff, firefighters and paramedics.
The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill will mean the maximum sentence for anyone found guilty of assaulting an emergency service worker, such as by thumping, kicking, pushing, shoving or spitting, is doubled to two years.
Figures from North Yorkshire Police Fire and Crime Commissioner office found in the last 12 months 696 assaults were recorded against emergency service workers in North Yorkshire and York.
177 of those assaults resulted in injuries to the emergency service work and 8 in 10 were assaults on police officers.
Mr Allott drew attention to a particular case in Harrogate where an officer sustained a broken jaw after being assaulted.
He said: "That officer in Harrogate was assaulted last year and he was off work for a considerable amount of time but the perpetrator was given a suspended sentence and to me that isn't a justified amount of time.
"He was paranoid about going out, concerned about going to work and that meant he couldn't do his job properly and left North Yorkshire Police without an officer. The effect these assaults have can be extremely detrimental."
Mr Allott, added: “The sheer number of crimes where an emergency worker has been assaulted in North Yorkshire and York over the past year shocked me, and I know it will shock all those reading them too.
“These are individuals who are on the frontline and putting themselves in harm’s way who are being assaulted while working hard to protect us. It is only right we do everything we can to protect them in return by ensuring those who attack them go to prison.
“In my view, it’s simple – when someone attacks an emergency service worker, and unless they are detained under section 136 of the Mental Health Act, nothing less than a custodial sentence will do and I will be writing to the court, at the time of sentencing, for anyone convicted of assaulting a police officer, PCSO, paramedic, firefighter or transport police in North Yorkshire and York to make that case.
“I want everyone across North Yorkshire and York to know that this is our position. There is never an excuse for assaulting those public servants who are there to keep us safe. If convicted of an attack, I will do all I can to ensure they face imprisonment which is the punishment they deserve. For those still intent on attacking emergency workers, please don’t subsequently say you were not warned.”