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Special constable jailed
Peter Lightfoot and (below) Mark Aspinall after the beating
A SPECIAL constable who was caught on camera smashing an off-duty soldier’s head into the ground during an arrest outside a Wigan nightspot has been jailed.
Peter Lightfoot, 40, who was nicknamed Tackleberry by fellow officers after the gung-ho, gadget-obsessed Police Academy movie character, was yesterday sentenced to three years behind bars.
The father-of-two had earlier been found guilty of assaulting Afghanistan veteran Lance Corporal Mark Aspinall outside the Walkabout bar in King Street while making an arrest in the summer of 2008.
During a high-profile trial at Manchester Crown Court this summer, jurors were shown damning CCTV footage of Lightfoot forcing the soldier’s head into the ground and striking him with a police helmet.
The court heard the haulage driver had previously been given a warning about using excessive force during an arrest in 2007.
But he had also been nominated for a bravery award after confronting a robber who was wielding an imitation handgun and won a Special Constable of the Year award in 2003.
The attack on L/Cpl Aspinall, who also served in Iraq, unfolded in the early hours of July 27, 2008.
Police were called to the Walkabout bar after the soldier shouted abuse at door staff when he was thrown out.
Three officers, including Lightfoot, then attempted to arrest L/Cpl Aspinall in the middle of the road after he obstructed paramedics as they attempted to treat a woman who had collapsed.
L/Cpl Aspinall was initially convicted of two counts of attacking the officers by Wigan magistrates but they had not viewed the CCTV footage.
He later won an appeal to have the verdict quashed.
Judge Jeffrey Lewis revealed yesterday that Lightfoot had received 20 character references from ex-colleagues.
But he said the defendant had used unlawful violence when arresting L/Cpl Aspinall – describing it as “unacceptable and intolerable”.
Judge Lewis told Lightfoot: “It is a matter of profound regret that you departed from your usual standards, whether because the red mist descended or because you decided to inflict punishment because of his attitude and unpleasant behaviour.
“However badly he behaved, he did not deserve to be treated as you treated him during this short-lived bout of violence. You abused your position of trust and power.”
Lightfoot was jailed for one year for perjury and two years for assault, to run consecutively.
Judge Lewis rejected a claim for compensation for L/Cpl Aspinall.
Two other officers involved in the incident, Sgt Stephen Russell, 34, and PC Richard Kelsall, 29, were both earlier cleared of assault.
Greater Manchester Police’s assistant chief constable, Garry Shewan, said: “The conduct of Peter Lightfoot fell well below the standard we expect.
“We are even more disappointed that he knowingly lied before a criminal court.”
Lightfoot has now resigned from the police.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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