This is the face of a man who spat at an ambulance worker during pandemic

He spat in the woman's face when she was just trying to help him

A man who spat on an ambulance worker during the coronavirus pandemic has been jailed.

Dale Pickering, 31, of Bishops Walk, Church Warsop, pleaded guilty to two counts of assault against an emergency worker and a further assault at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, May 26

The ambulance was called to Wood Lane in Warsop on Saturday, May 16, after a concerned member of the public spotted Pickering lying in the street.

Pickering became aggressive when the ambulance arrived and spat towards the ambulance technician.

The two emergency workers took Pickering to his home address where he spat at another man and spat at the ambulance technician again, this time spitting in her face. He also repeatedly pushed the paramedic.

East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) Ambulance Technician, Paula Page, who was responding with her paramedic husband Matthew from Kingsmill Ambulance Station, said: "We asked the patient if he could stop spitting by explaining the seriousness of passing on Covid-19 but he wouldn’t stop.

"I felt angry and upset that someone could treat myself and my husband in such a vile manner when all we were trying to do was help someone who needed our assistance.

"We could not continue to respond to other patients who may have needed us while we were dealing with this patient’s violent behaviour and then because we needed to help the police with their enquiries.

"Our role involves seeing people who've consumed a lot of alcohol or taken illegal drugs and they don't always behave as themselves."

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Kelvin Langford, local security management specialist at EMAS, said: "Assaults on our staff are absolutely unacceptable and we take a zero-tolerance approach towards anyone who verbally or physically assaults them.

"Our frontline colleagues, as well as our team in our 999-control room, are here to help people, not to be assaulted, and they deserve to be treated with respect."

Assistant Chief Constable Kate Meynell of Nottinghamshire Police, condemned the attack.

She added: "This was disgusting behaviour and I have every sympathy for my fellow emergency workers who had to go through this ordeal. I know the anxiety this must have caused them and the other man involved.

"That’s why we take these incidents so seriously and I’m pleased this outcome shows that assaulting emergency workers will not be tolerated."

He was sentenced to 20 weeks in prison.

Pickering also pleaded guilty and was handed a further 20-week sentence, suspended for 18 months, in relation to two drink-driving offences and a further assault.

The first drink driving offence and the further assault happened in Bishops Walk, Church Warsop on January 27, when Pickering was involved in a collision and got out and kicked the driver of the other car.

Pickering was also caught drink-driving in Bishops Walk on February 17.