Black belt guilty of road rage has prison term reduced

A black belt kung-fu fighter who was jailed after injuring two elderly men in a frenzy of road rage had his term reduced from four to three years by the court of appeal.

Tristan Scott Haynes, 41, was convicted for grievously injuring David Shepherd, 63, and Joseph Attard, 62, after a traffic accident on the Coast Road in Baħar Iċ-Ċagħaq.

The crash took place when Mr Haynes tried to overtake Mr Attard from the inner lane, stopping in front of him and blocking his path.

Mr Haynes got out of his car and walked up to Mr Attard, who tried to explain that he had two disabled people with him in the car, before Mr Haynes hit Mr Attard in the eye.

Mr Shepherd stepped out of the car to help his friend, who was sprawled on the bonnet and covered in blood by then, but Mr Haynes turned to him and hit him several times, including two blows to the chest before his victim passed out and regained consciousness in hospital.

He was sentenced to four years by a court who ruled that he had abused of his fighting techniques against two pensioners. However, following an appeal filed on February 9, a court presided over by Judge Michael Mallia said that "considering the time factor and the fact that all parties made a full recovery and have got on with their lives, there should be a reconsideration of the punishment awarded".

He stressed that the first court was correct in its assessments, but added that the case warranted a "mitigation of the punishment awarded to better reflect the actual situation governing the appellant in relation to the harm caused" and reduced the jail term to three years.