A drunken thug attacked a couple and their friend outside a Durham city centre bar after spouting homophobic and misogynistic abuse.
Liam Gallagher had been kicked out of a pub for being too drunk when he began hurling abuse at the three victims, who were enjoying a night out together on August 8, last year. The 31-year-old then went on to punch one of the young women in the face, causing her to fall and hit her head on the pavement before he punched her boyfriend and caused lasting damage to his front teeth.
Following that attack, Gallagher, who had been drinking whiskey, targeted the couple's friend and punched her in the face before throwing bags of rubbish at her. The incident left one of the women with concussion and is terrified to back into Durham city centre.
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On Monday, Gallagher, of Wharton Street, Coundon, Bishop Auckland, appeared at Durham Crown Court to be sentenced for two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and one count of assault by beating. He pleaded guilty to the charges at a previous hearing.
Matthew Hopkins, prosecuting, said the three friends, a young couple and another young woman, were having a night out in Durham and were standing outside Fabio's bar on Saddler's Street when Gallagher and his friend, who had both just been kicked out of a bar, approached them. He said: "The defendant told the man that he was a f*****y Durham student and called the women s****. He told them 'I bet you're going into that gay Fabio's bar'. The man said they should leave."
Gallagher's friend then put his arm around the man's girlfriend and she pushed him away, causing Gallagher to intervene and push her into the road into oncoming traffic. The woman's boyfriend then pushed Gallagher and a doorman broke the pair up. But Gallagher then "went after" the woman, throwing a drink at her and spitting on her. Mr Hopkins said: "He continued to follow her as she walked away. The doorman then saw the defendant punch her to the face, she fell backwards on to the ground and hit her head off the pavement. The man then rushed to his girlfriend's defence and the defendant then punched him to the face as well."
The couple's female friend then "challenged" Gallagher, who swung a punch towards her but missed. He then "shoved her" and punched her in the face before picking up bags of rubbish and throwing them at her. Gallagher then ran away but was arrested a short time later and the couple went to A&E. The court heard the woman was left with "concussion and a black eye" and the man suffered damage to his front teeth. The third victim sustained no injury.
In interview, Gallagher denied hitting any of the women and claimed he had been punched first by the man, causing him to retaliate. In a victim statement, the woman who was injured said she is now "anxious" and is scared to go back into Durham.
The court was told Gallagher, a dad-of-one, had nine previous convictions for 12 offences, including battery in 2021 and assaulting a police officer in 2013. He also assaulted his then-partner in 2012.
Christopher Bevan, defending, said Gallagher and his friend had been for Sunday lunch on the day of the offences and were "in drink and they wanted more drink", so got the bus into Durham, where they got more drunk. He said: "The defendant describes that he had the equivalent of three quarters of a bottle of whiskey and accepts and takes responsibility for the assaults on all individuals.
"He fully accepts he made homophobic comments. He is deeply sorry for what he did and is disappointed in himself that he, yet again, finds himself in this position before this court for committing offences fuelled by alcohol." Mr Bevan added that Gallagher suffers from depression and has since "reduced his drinking substantially".
Sentencing Gallagher, Judge James Adkin, the Recorder of Durham, said he made "homophobic and misogynistic remarks" before carrying out the unprovoked attack. He added that Gallagher poses an "active and imminent risk to women when you have been drinking" and called the offences "drunken thuggery against young people".
He said: "Hitting women in the face with a homophobic element is always going to lead to a prison sentence". Gallagher was jailed for nine months.
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