Coventry man jailed after admitting attack on paramedic
A man who broke the jaw of a student paramedic has been jailed.
Chris Cooling, 40, was part of a crew called to treat Jamie Davies in Earlsdon, Coventry, after he reported having breathing difficulties. Davies then punched Mr Cooling in the face, breaking his jaw so badly it needed a metal plate inserted. Davies, 22, admitted causing grievous bodily harm with intent at Coventry Crown Court on Tuesday and sentenced to seven years and two months in prison. Mr Cooling, who is yet to return to work due to ongoing pain and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, since the attack on 5 April, said it had had a "massive impact". He said he would "always have to live with the fear of something like this happening again". West Midlands Police said when the paramedics arrived they could find nothing wrong with Davies, who had made six 999 calls in just over an hour and been seen by paramedics already that evening. He demanded an inhaler and when Mr Cooling walked away, Davies punched him, the force said. Davies drove away, hitting the ambulance, but was found by officers behind the wheel of his damaged Vauxhall Meriva. Davies, of Winifred Drive, also admitted a charge of possession of class A drugs, and one of damaging property. As well as the seven-year jail term, he was banned from driving for three years. Davies denied a charge of assault by beating and another of damaging property, which will lie on file. "Whilst I suffered particularly severe injuries many others have also been attacked," Mr Cooling said. "It is sentences like this that will make people stop and think before they do something similar, yet too often the sentences do not reflect the effect such incidents have on us." West Midlands Ambulance Service Chief Executive Anthony Marsh said he was determined to work with police to bring anyone who attacked his staff to justice. Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, on Twitter, and sign up for local news updates direct to your phone.