A 67-year-old grandfather from the North East says his life has been ruined after he was brutally attacked by two teenagers in Sunderland city centre, who were spared jail. Norman Cooke lost his job, confidence, and independence after being repeatedly kicked and punched by the young strangers, who he says started to "act like Bruce Lee" near Park Lane bus station.
Attack and Injuries
The attack happened in June 2023 when Norman was out with his friend Carla Nossini to celebrate the life of a friend who had recently passed away. Newcastle Crown Court heard how Carla made a "harmless comment" towards some youths sitting in a doorway, remarking that they had a nice cool spot on the hot summer night. Violence quickly flared after some of the teens took umbrage at the comment.
Then-16-year-old Thomas Courtney and two girls attacked Carla. As Norman attempted to protect her, Courtney and then-15-year-old Lincoln Hudson subjected him to a brutal attack, repeatedly punching and kicking him, including to the head after he fell to the ground, leaving him unconscious. Courtney also stole Norman's mobile phone during the attack, and Hudson sent a Snapchat video of Norman's bloodied face to a friend.
Aftermath and Impact
Norman was taken to hospital by ambulance, where medics discovered a small pooling of blood between his skull and brain. He spent almost two weeks in hospital. Following his discharge, he was forced to leave his job at Sunderland's Nissan factory due to the impact of the attack. He told the Chronicle: "I still walk with a limp. I'm going to be on medication for the rest of my life. I'm frightened to go out now unless I'm meeting friends. It's totally changed my life. I was working at Nissan as an autoparts inspector but I couldn't lift the parts so I couldn't do my job anymore. I really loved the job but I made a decision to leave because I couldn't do it anymore and I didn't want to be an embarrassment."
Norman admitted he even tried to take his own life as he struggled with the trauma of what happened. He said: "They could have killed us. It was all over nothing and it's turned my life upside down. I have worked non-stop since I was 19, those yobs have taken all that away from us. I'm disgusted by the sentence. I was hoping they would be sent down. You would think they would go to jail for that. It was just a total kick in the teeth."
Sentencing
The sentencing of Norman's attackers was delayed as the courts attempted to clear backlogs from the Covid pandemic. Hudson, 18, of Bedburn Road, in Hamsterley, near Bishop Auckland, who had three previous convictions, pleaded guilty to attempted GBH with intent. Courtney, 19, of Ashbourne Road in Stockton, who had nine previous convictions, pleaded guilty to attempting to cause GBH with intent, assault, and two counts of theft.
Recorder Richard Herrmann sentenced both of them to two years in prison suspended for two years, with 250 hours unpaid work and programme requirements. Two females previously received out of court disposals for their role in the incident, the court heard.
