A man who scrambled onto a kitchen worktop and hurled items at police officers has been jailed for two years. David Hey swung a zombie knife towards an officer attempting to detain him, Teesside Crown Court heard.
The 40-year-old threw water and a glass ashtray at officers after they arrived at a Hartlepool property where he was staying with a friend. The ashtray struck a wall, and shards of glass hit one of the officers.
Threats and Detention
Hey then made threats to take his own life, prosecutor Nigel Soppitt told the court on Tuesday. Officers attended the house on Hutton Avenue in Hartlepool on August 2 regarding an unrelated incident, and upon entering it became apparent that Hey was wanted by police.
Officers deployed a taser and Hey was detained.
Guilty Pleas and Criminal Record
Hey subsequently pleaded guilty to possession of an offensive weapon, threatening a person with a weapon, affray, and three counts of assault. His criminal record includes previous convictions for battery, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and assault.
In 2024, Hey received a prison sentence for punching his partner and driving her Ford Kuga into a brick wall. During that arrest, he bit one officer and headbutted two others.
Defence and Sentencing
His barrister, Stephen Constantine, told the court that his client "simply panicked. He was frightened he was going to be put in custody." Hey has had "mental health problems for some time," his barrister stated, though he is now back on his prescribed medication in prison, where he has been held on remand. "He's described, in his pre-sentence report, as someone who wants to receive intensive support for his abuse of drugs," Mr Constantine said.
"Your Honour could give Mr Hey the opportunity to put his money where his mouth is. It's a stark choice, immediate custody, or you can impose a sentence that would hang over his head - let him prove himself. He knows if he reoffends, there is no further chance," the defence barrister continued.
However, Judge Peter Makepeace ruled that a suspended sentence was not an option "in all the circumstances of this case." Hey, of Bruce Crescent in Wingate, was subsequently handed a two-year custodial sentence.
