DRUG DEALER FEIGNED TO HEADBUTT GIRLFRIEND AND KNOCKED OVER PRAM
A DRUG dealer has been spared jail after feigning to headbutt his then-girlfriend and knocking over a pram containing a toddler.Drugs and cash were seized by police after raiding the home of Jordan Kennedy, while he committed the assaults while on bail.
The 26-year-old appeared before Liverpool Crown Court to be sentenced for possession with intent to supply cannabis and two counts of common assault.
But the fact that no injury was caused and that he has begun the process of rehabilitation allowed a judge to suspend his jail term.
Explaining the facts of the case, prosecutor Iain Criddle said that police executed a search warrant at Kennedy’s home on Manchester Road in Woolston on March 16 last year.
Inside, they found 43 packages of cannabis which had an estimated value of around £1,600, as well as £420 in cash and sets of scales.
Mobile phones seized were sent for a forensic analysis, and content was consistent with the retail supply of controlled drugs to end users, the court heard.
During his police interview, the defendant told officers that the drugs were for his own personal use – a view that was rejected by the prosecution.
While released on bail or under investigation, Kennedy then committed two assault offences in Liverpool city centre against his then-girlfriend and 15-month-old daughter.
The court heard how they had been in a relationship for around two years, but that it was fraught with a ‘history of volatility’.
On July 5 last year, his partner was out with friends in Liverpool and later met-up with the defendant.
Both assaults were captured on CCTV, footage of which was played in court.
The first, against his girlfriend, saw Kennedy motion to headbutt her by moving his head towards her, with the court hearing that she ‘would have feared he would headbutt her’, but that there was no connection.
The second, against his daughter, saw him and his partner arguing, with Kennedy forcefully snatching a bag stored in a pram containing their daughter, causing it to tip over.
No injuries were sustained by either victim, the court heard, with footage showing passers-by running over to assist after the pram incident.
It was revealed that Kennedy has 18 previous convictions dating back to 2013, including multiple for offences of dishonesty, as well as public disorder and assault.
Mr Criddle said that the defendant played a ‘significant’ drug dealing role, as he would have known the scale of the operation and could expect a ‘significant’ financial reward.
On the assault matters, it was said that Kennedy ‘threatened to use his head as a weapon’, causing psychological distress, while his actions in the pram incident were ‘reckless’ and he used ‘quite significant force’.
Mitigating on behalf of her client, Sarah Griffin said: “The defendant has made significant steps since the offending and has stayed out of trouble.” It was said that he has completed work on domestic violence and has demonstrated ‘regret and remorse’, with Ms Griffin adding that Kennedy is ‘someone who can be properly rehabilitated’.
“He truly wants to move forward in his life not using cannabis, as his most important role is to be a proper role model to his daughter,” she said.
Before sentencing, judge Stuart Driver said that the case displayed an ‘unpleasant package of offending’.
He said the assaults were ‘unusual’ as there was no intent to assault the child, and no contact was made with his former partner, and neither were injured.
Kennedy was sentenced to 12 months in prison suspended for 12 months, during which time he must complete 25 rehabilitation activity requirement days and the building better relationships programme.
In addition, the court approved orders for the destruction of the drugs and paraphernalia, and for the forfeiture of the cash seized, which will be donated to the court’s charity of the month.
