Westcliff: Officer who 'knelt on man's head' in arrest cleared of assault

PC Christopher Wentworth, 40, insisted he used reasonable force after Hassan Butt, 33, sunk his teeth into his hand in Grosvenor Road, Westcliff on 20 March last year.

In a video posted on social media the motorist is handcuffed and restrained against a car before he appears to lunge at a police officer.

The suspect is then taken to the ground.

PC Wentworth claimed he only struck Mr Butt after he bit him, drawing blood, and was cleared of assault by beating after a two-day trial at Westminster Magistrates' Court.

Micaila Williams, prosecuting, said Mr Butt appeared to be 'very intoxicated' after he got out of a red Peugeot, following a collision with a black Mini Cooper in Grosvenor Road.

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Essex police officer PC Adam James was the first on the scene with PC Wentworth and Temporary Police Sergeant (TPS) Dean Young arriving shortly after.

PC James spoke to Mr Butt and handcuffed him.

‘PC James told Mr Butt that he was being detained as he was suspected to be driving the vehicle.'

According to PC James the driver was intoxicated but giving ‘low level resistance’.

But when Mr Butt jerked his head towards TPS Young the driver was then taken to the ground.

‘PC Wentworth, takes hold of his clothing, assisting in taking him to the floor,' said Ms Williams.

‘PC James was on his legs, TPS Young on top of his body and the defendant PC Wentworth was at Mr Butt’s head with his right knee on Mr Butt’s side of his face.’ ‘The defendant is seen to punch Mr Butt in the back of the head with his right hand.

‘It was a single punch the Crown say...with some force.

‘The Crown’s case is that this punch, quite simply, was an assault.

‘The defendant now indicates that the reason for the punch was that he held a reasonable belief that Mr Butt had bitten him on his left hand and that the strike was therefore necessary.’ PC James heard his colleague say that Mr Butt had bitten him and TPS Young ‘heard a cry of pain’, the court was told.

‘It is accepted by the Crown that the defendant did suffer an injury to his left hand,’ Ms Williams said.

‘Video footage showed there was no injury until after the strike by this defendant.

‘The defendant…continued to restrain him with his knee to his face in, the Crown say, a more forceful manner.’ Mr Butt was then put into a spit hood and told PC Wentworth he was 'p*ssed off that he had punched him in the f**king head.'

PC Wentworth allegedly replied: ‘Yeah, because you bit me you f**king idiot.’ The prosecutor said PC Wentworth filed a 'use of force' form out after the incident.

The Essex officer ‘made no mention of the punch’ but his witness statement did.

Mr Butt was initially charged with offences of assault on an emergency worker, but the charge was discontinued.

‘The Crown accept that prior to the punch the restraint was to all intents and purposes necessary,’ Ms Williams said.

‘It is therefore after the punch that the Crown say the force was excessive in the circumstances.’ Giving evidence in a dark suit and tie, PC Wentworth claimed he took hold of Mr Butt to stop him from falling to the ground.

The Essex officer told the court he originally stood away from Mr Butt when he arrived on the scene.

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‘I could see that he was stood with PC James and PS Young and he was just being aggressive and shouting, not cooperating,’ he said.

‘Just generally being abusive.’ The bearded officer went on to say that he moved towards them when he heard shouting.

‘It was at a point when Mr Butt had leaned towards PS Young in order to headbutt him.

‘When he was moving forward it appeared to me that he was attempting to assault PS Young.’ He added: ‘The reason for me getting involved was again as PS Young pushed or moved Mr Butt’s head away I obviously got involved because it appeared that he was going over the bunk of a smart car so I took hold of him to prevent him from falling to the ground.’ Andrew McGee, defending, asked: ‘Once he was on the ground what did you do?’ PC Wentworth replied: ‘I rested my shin on his right side of his face, that was to prevent him moving.

‘It was more so that the officers could search Mr Butt by controlling his head and preventing him moving.’ Mr McGee continued: ‘How much force were you applying?’ ‘None at all,’ the officer replied.

‘The force was very little.

‘Mr Butt could still move his head under my shin.’ PC Wentworth said he went to get up and felt ‘something’ on his hand.

‘It felt like Mr Butt grabbed my hand and I felt a sharp pain in my left hand,’ he said.

‘At no point did I see what caused it.

‘It was at that point that I believed Mr Butt had bitten my hand.’ Asked how he reacted, PC Wentworth said: ‘I struck him once to the back of the head.

‘I’d done that to obviously prevent further injury to myself.’ He told the court how his hand began to bleed from the ‘open wound’.

The officer then arrested Mr Butt for assaulting a policeman.

Following his return to the police station, PC Wentworth went to Southend Hospital and was treated for the wound to his hand.

Mr McGee said the diagnosis was ‘a wound incised bite on the hand’ and the officer was prescribed antibiotics.

‘At any stage did you lose your temper with Mr Butt and punch out at him violently and without reason?’ the barrister asked.

‘I did not,’ PC Wentworth said.

In cross examination the prosecutor took the officer through footage and suggested that it was ‘nigh on impossible’ that Mr Butt bit him, ‘I felt something on my hand, I had an injury that was consistent with a bite,’ he replied.

Ms Williams continued: ‘My point to you is this. Honestly, genuinely, reasonably held belief is all well and good but the circumstances that prevailed at the time was that you could not hold that belief.

‘There was no way that Hassan Butt could have bitten you at the time.’ PC Wentworth replied: ‘I say he has bitten me that is why I struck him.’ Clearing him of the charge, Judge Nina Tempia said: ‘PC Wentworth is a man of good character.

‘In my view he held an honest and genuine belief that he had just been bitten by Mr Butt.

‘I accept that he was entitled to use reasonable force in these circumstances.

‘I find PC Wentworth not guilty.’ Wentworth, of Shoeburyness, Essex, denied and was cleared of assault by beating.