A resident at a Luton home for people released from jail attacked a security guard in a row over food.
Luke Waters, now 31, became aggressive when he was told, in the early hours in April last year, that the kitchen at Greenfield Residential Home was shut because of Covid.
Staff told him there was rice that he could cook, but Waters said he did not want to eat it, Luton Crown Court heard on Thursday, August 19, 2021.
Prosecutor Victoria Lovett said when he heard the police were being called he walked to his room and returned with an empty bottle. He returned to the staff hatch before kicking the door to the room, causing it to fall off its hinges.
CCTV played to the court showed Waters backing the security guard into a corner. He punched him to the face, hit him on the head with the bottle and punched him again to the eye, breaking his glasses.
Another resident appeared and took the bottle away. Waters walked out and gave himself up to Luton police a few days later.
He told the officers he had smoked two large spliffs and had drunk Hennessy whisky.
Waters, formerly of William Street, Luton, appeared for sentence on a video link from Bedford prison, having pleaded guilty to committing actual bodily harm on April 9, 2020.
He had 46 convictions for 98 offences.
When he attacked the security guard he had been released on licence half-way through a three year sentence for burglary.
Defending, Carl Wheeler said Waters he had made early admissions to the offence.
Because he had been recalled to prison on the burglary sentence, the last 17 months he had spent in jail would not count towards his sentence for the actual bodily harm.
Mr Wheeler said Waters had contracted long covid while in prison and when released in March last year, had been admitted to a mental health ward.
He went on: “He does have a mental disorder and has spent the majority of his adult life in and out of prison. For the first time he has obtained enhanced privileges (in prison) and may be starting to turn a corner. In his own words, he is starting to grow up.”
Judge Rebecca Herbert adjourned sentence until September 6, for a report to be prepared by Waters’ offender manager. She said: “At some point he has to be released from custody. Something needs to be put in place for him. I don’t want him to come out of prison with no support from probation.”
