Tate Modern Attacker Convicted for Violent Broadmoor Hospital Assault
Jonty Bravery, the teenager who threw a six-year-old boy from the 10th-floor viewing platform of Tate Modern, has been found guilty of violently assaulting two female nurses at Broadmoor Hospital.
The 23-year-old, who is already serving a life sentence for the 2019 Tate Modern incident, refused to appear via video link at Westminster Magistrates' Court where he faced charges relating to the September 30 attack last year.
Violent Outburst in Maximum Security Hospital
Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring found Bravery guilty in his absence after concluding the defendant had deliberately absented himself from proceedings. The court heard how Bravery's room at the maximum security hospital in Berkshire contains only a mattress on the floor and an adjoining bathroom.
Prosecutor Tom Heslop outlined how Bravery, who requires supervision by three staff members at all times due to his mental health needs, asked to use the toilet before attempting to climb out of his bedroom window upon returning.
Nurses Linda McKinlay and Kate Mastalerz restrained Bravery, who was wearing only boxer shorts at the time. After initially calming down, Bravery suddenly kicked out towards Ms Mastalerz in the groin area before turning his attention to Ms McKinlay, clawing across her face with his fingernails.
Life-Changing Impact on Healthcare Staff
Ms McKinlay described how Bravery "attacked my face by clawing at my face" leaving her "face and eye all scratched and bleeding." The experienced nurse, who had never been attacked before during her years at Broadmoor, required hospital treatment and was discharged the following morning.
"Afterwards I was very shaky and couldn't believe it happened," she told the court. "I'm just nervous sometimes when I'm approaching an incident. My main thing is my family and grandkids seeing me like that."
Her colleague Ms Mastalerz described seeing "droplets of blood" on Ms McKinlay's face before Bravery attacked her too. She said the incident had more of a mental than physical impact, describing it as "a very stressful situation for myself and for my colleague and for Jonty."
The judge determined that staff members had used reasonable force to restrain Bravery, who was under no physical threat at the time of his violent outburst.
Previous Violent History and Sentencing
Bravery was already detained at Broadmoor after admitting attempted murder for throwing a French tourist boy 100ft from the Tate Modern viewing platform in August 2019. The child suffered life-changing injuries including a brain bleed, spinal fractures and broken limbs, though his family recently reported he has learned to run, swim and jump again after years of therapy.
This isn't Bravery's first assault while in custody. In January 2020, he punched a female nursing assistant in the head and face before biting a rehabilitation therapist assistant, resulting in an additional 14-week custody sentence.
Bravery, who has autism and a personality disorder, was 17 at the time of the Tate Modern attack and has been detained ever since. He will be sentenced for the latest assaults on January 8, though he remains subject to his original life term with a minimum of 15 years before parole consideration.
