'Watch this, I'm going to stab him': Jealous Cannock man avoids jail
A jealous man who threatened to stab his partner's friend has been given a suspended jail sentence.
Drunken Christopher Murdoch climbed out of the window of his girlfriend's house and ran towards Luc Hill waving a kitchen knife around, Stafford Crown Court heard.
Mr Hill was sitting in his car and Murdoch prodded the knife at the vehicle. Just beforehand, the defendant had told his girlfriend, Loren Harrison 'watch this, I'm going to stab him'.
Murdoch, aged 21, of Brunswick Road, Cannock, admitted possessing a knife in a public place. He was given an eight-month prison sentence suspended for two years, ordered to do 100 hours unpaid community work and pay £600 costs.
Recorder Mr Simon Ward told him: "On August 31, you behaved in a very frightening way, you were drunk, angry and jealous. You were at home at the time - you weren't carrying a knife around with you."
Miss Fiona Cortese, prosecuting, said Miss Harrison and Mr Hill were just friends and had never been in a relationship.
On the day in question, Mr Hill had seen her and the defendant in Silks nightclub in Cannock. After they left, she sent Mr Hill a text message and he drove round to her home. He knocked on the door, but it was locked, there was shouting inside and Miss Harrison, trying to get the knife off Murdoch, was pulled away from the window.
Mr Hill told the defendant to come outside and Murdoch then said 'watch this, I'm going to stab him' before climbing out of the window to terrify the victim.
Mr Delroy Henry, defending, said: "This was absolutely disgraceful intimidatory behaviour, no excuse for it. The fact he was in drink is more an explanation rather than an excuse. He's taken steps to moderate his drinking."
Murdoch had never been in trouble before, had glowing character references and was due to start a job as a parcel sorter if he was given a non-custodial sentence, said Mr Henry.
