An irate father who launched a terrifying court attack on a judge after being banned from visiting his children’s school has been jailed for three years.
Greg Hazledine, 41, threw a radiator across the courtroom at Judge Patrick Perusko when a ruling went against him in a bitter family court dispute with his former partner.
He jumped on to a table, vaulted on to the judge’s bench, and chased Judge Perusko into his Chambers and then into another hearing room at Milton Keynes county court.
Southwark crown court heard Judge Perusko feared for his life as Hazledine landed repeated punches to his head.
Mr Justice Goss sentenced Hazledine to three years in prison, for the assault on Judge Perusko and a previous incident when he hurled a torrent of angry abuse at another judge.
Hazledine, a business owner, has previous convictions for a 2004 assault on a traffic warden and a playground assault on his former partner’s mother.
“When angered, there is a significant risk of you using physical violence and causing serious injury”, said the sentencing judge.
The court heard Hazledine, from Princes Risborough in Buckinghamshire, appeared before Recorder Dharmesh Patel on July 13 last year, during his family court proceedings.
When an order went against him, he became “visibly agitated”, interrupted the judge repeatedly, and shouted aggressively for the judge to “be a man”.
When the judge pressed the panic alarm and went to leave court, Hazledine shouted: “Why don’t you come here let’s go outside. Call security like you did last time you f***ing weasel.”
Judge Perusko, a senior judge, was called upon to take over case as a result of the outburst.
The attack happened on November 29 last year, just as a non-molestation order was placed on Hazledine, banning him from visiting his children’s school.
The judge was about to leave court because Hazledine was “angry and aggressive” when he “picked up a laptop on a desk and a small free standing electric radiator, then threw the radiator across the courtroom towards the Judge’s bench, and jumped on top of the table and vaulted the judicial barrier.”
“The Judge ran out of the door of the court to his chambers and through two doors into hearing room one where District Judge Nutley was working”, said Mr Justice Goss.
“You pursued and caught up with him as he got past District Judge Nutley and pushed him to the corner of the room, he hit his head on the metal base of a coat stand.
“You pinned him down with your body weight, your hand on top of his chest and throat and punched him to the head a number of times.”
District Judge Nutley described the attack as “relentless”, as Hazledine rained down punches and said he did not care about going to prison.
“Every blow you delivered to Judge Perusko was with a clenched fist”, said Mr Justice Goss.
“Your face was bright red. You would occasionally stop punching him to say something abusive or threatening and would then start punching him again.
“He began talking to you saying it would all be okay. Your partner and the security officer had followed and eventually found you.
“She pleaded with you to stop, but you ignored them telling the Judge to promise that he would let you see the children.
“They tried to pull you off and eventually you let go enabling the judge to leave the room.”
Judge Perusko suffered wounds, swelling, and bruising to his head, he had back pain in the following weeks, and said he “feared for his life at the time you attacked him”.
Hazledine, who refused to undergo psychological testing before being sentenced, told the court he is “truly sorry”.
The judge told him: “You were out of control and have very little insight into your behaviour, the role of the judge and the very frightening ordeal to which you subjected him.
“He considers you have issues with regulating your emotions and temper and seek to resolve issues by resorting to physical violence, acting impulsively and failing to see the potential harm.
“It is clear that you have a close attachment to your children but have no perception on how your behaviour may have contributed to why you have restricted access to them.”
He was jailed for three years after pleading guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm, a public order offence, and criminal damage of the radiator.
He will serve up to half the sentence in custody before being released on licence.
