Exclusive:Drunken man who stabbed friend in street 'fortunate' not to be serving life sentence
The judge told Luke Foreman he could have been facing life in prison.
A man who stabbed his friend in a street fight is “fortunate” not to be serving a life sentence, a judge has said.
Luke Foreman, 22 of no fixed abode, left a friend fighting for his life after stabbing him in Hunts Pond Road, Park Gate, on November 15 last year. Initially charged with attempted murder, he pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm, as well as carrying a knife in a public place. He also pleaded guilty to shoplifting and common assault, for a separate incident on the same day.
At Portsmouth Crown Court this morning, Foreman - who wore a white shirt with black tie and waistcoat - was sentenced for all these offences.
Ed Wylde, prosecuting, told the court that Foreman spent the day with two friends, one of whom was Charlie Johns. Having spent the day drinking beer, they went to a nearby Morrisons at 5.30pm to get two more crates of booze.
Both men tried to walk out of the store without paying. When shouted at to turn around by a member of staff, Foreman pushed him to the floor, threatened to cut him and said he would return again to steal more beer.
Later that afternoon, Foreman and Johns got into an argument, which boiled over into brawl in Hunts Pond Road. In the ensuing fight, Foreman stabbed his victim with an 8in blade; emergency services rushed to the scene, and the defendant surrendered himself to police.
Mr Johns required emergency surgery, including a blood transfusion, after “massive” abdominal blood loss from two stab wounds.
Mr Wylde said: “Foreman told police ‘I didn’t realise I stabbed him’. Various members of the public came to assist.
“He gave a no comment interview to police. He later said he didn’t mean to do serious harm, and that he acted in self-defence, and wanted to get him [Mr Johns] away from him.”
Thomas Horder, representing Foreman, told the court that the defendant, who worked as a window cleaner, had struggled in recent years, with his parents divorcing, finding himself homeless and drinking “heavily”.
While Foreman was in custody, his father died suddenly, although he was still able to attend the funeral. Before sentencing, Judge James Newton-Price offered his condolences to the defendant.
He said: “This is an extremely serious offence. You said you had been drinking heavily, and accept that your behaviour was wrong. But the fact is that you produced the knife, and you stabbed him.
“If the knife had gone deeper, or in a different direction, you could have been looking at a sentence of life in prison. It’s only a matter of chance that you’re not in that position today.”
For grievous bodily harm and possession of a knife in a public place, Foreman was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison, concurrent for both offences. His sentence for shoplifting and common assault will be served concurrently, taking his total sentence to 36 months.
DC Ethan Beesley, of the Eastern Criminal Investigation Department, said, “This was an appalling act of violence, which could have cost a man his life. This court result underlines that we will not tolerate knife crime in our local communities. There are serious consequences for everyone involved in crimes like this, whether you are a victim or you have chosen to carry a knife. It’s important that we also highlight that tackling serious violence such as this, robustly dealing with offenders and working in partnership to prevent offending remains a priority for our officers.
“Anyone found to have been involved in offending of this nature will be pursued and brought before the courts. I hope that bringing Foreman to justice helps the man that he assaulted to move forward in the knowledge that he has been sent to prison.
“This sentence sends a strong message to anyone who chooses to carry a knife or engage in violence of this nature that we will not accept this behaviour. Your actions may have devastating consequences for others, as well as for yourself. I would strongly encourage anyone considering carrying a knife to think about their choices, before they make a serious mistake that they can’t undo.”