'˜Goths' attacked for giving teen 'a dirty look'

Sentencing two of the attackers, a judge said: “This was an utterly unprovoked attack prompted by your hostile attitude to people who dress differently to you or appear differently to you.”

Liverpool Crown Court heard that they had both been smoking cannabis and one had also been drinking which Recorder Rachel Smith described as “an aggravating feature”.

“You demonstrated hostility to people not like you.

“These are acts of a bully and a coward who join in a group attack ... fortunately the injures caused were less serious than they might have been,” she said.

Lewis King, 18, of Leopold Street, Pemberton, and Jordan Naylor, 17, also known as Jordan Rourke, of Brook House, Scholes, both pleaded guilty to affray.

Naylor also admitted common assault on a 16-year-old boy. Jonathan Rodgers, prosecuting, said that the incident happened on January 16 this year when the victims’ group was waiting at a bus stop in the town centre to go home. Naylor went up to a 16-year-old boy and without any justification barged into him and punched him.

The boy ran off but Naylor followed and he and King and others in their group became involved in an affray in which the boy was kicked and punched to the head and body.

The two defendants then punched another young man in the group, 21-year-old Callum Woods, in the face and stomach while he was trying to calm the situation down. He fell backwards into a young woman in their group and she banged her head on the bus stop.

“Meanwhile, King continued a volley of punches to his jaw, mouth and ribs,” said Mr Rodgers. He came to in hospital.

Naylor joined in and at least three other young men were injured in the incident including one whose back was jumped on and kicked four times. All the victims received minor bruising and cuts.

Naylor, who admitted he had been drinking and smoking cannabis, claimed that someone in the other group had given him “a dirty look”.

King, who like Naylor has previous convictions, also admitted smoking cannabis and being present at the scene.

King was sentenced to a 12-month community order and Naylor received a youth rehabilitation order with 12 months supervision. Both also received a three-month curfew between 7pm to 7am and ordered to carry out 50 hours unpaid work. The court heard in mitigation that they were both young men who had pleaded guilty.