Mark Gardener, 48, was sentenced to eight weeks in prison for a series of offences.
Gardener, who told the Magistrate’s Court he intended to leave the island at the end of his prison sentence, was convicted for driving twice without insurance, assaulting a woman, breaching his bail by driving without insurance again, and then possessing the Class C drug Buprenorphine.
The offences spanned around six months, with the assault taking place on 16 November 2019. Gardener admitted the assault to police after being arrested for driving without insurance – officers did not know about the incident and the victim did not intend to make a complaint.
CCTV footage showed a woman slapped Gardener in the face and lunged at him several times, breaking the chain he was wearing around his neck.
Defence Advocate Sam Steel said they both went outside where Gardener became “frustrated” and shoved the woman, who lost her footing and banged her head.
He sat her down only for her to slap him again in the face. This time he “lost control” and slapped her back.
Judge Graeme McKerrell gave Gardener credit for admitting to the offence of his own volition. While this type of offence was a “one-off”, Gardener’s criminal record was an unenviable one.
“You have a long and terrible record but it had been some years since anything of significance has happened,” he said.
“You obviously cannot stay here [in Guernsey] and I would be amazed if you could get a permit.”
Gardener’s eight-week sentence for the cumulative offences dates back to 3 February this year.
