A LITTLEMOOR man has been jailed for ‘reckless and criminal’ actions he said were in self-defence.

Jody Bagwell, aged 22, was sentenced to 10 months in prison for unlawful wounding using a breadknife and possession of cannabis.

In mitigation, Robert Pawson said that the victim and a friend had been drinking in Weymouth on the night of the incident in July last year.

They met another group on a train and decided to get off and follow them to an address in Littlemoor where they intended to buy drugs.

The court heard that the pair got lost after an incident in the Co-op store and knocked on the door of Bagwell’s grandmother’s house, believing it to be the address they wanted.

Bagwell came to the door and a confrontation ensued, in which he used a breadknife to wound the victim, the court heard. When Bagwell was arrested, a cannabis cigarette fell from his pocket, which led to the charge of possession of the Class B drug.

Prosecutor Heather Shimmen told the court that Bagwell had 12 previous convictions for 16 offences, including battery, assaulting a police officer, breaching an order and criminal damage.

Mr Pawson said he disagreed with a probation officer’s report that said Bagwell showed ‘no remorse’ for his actions.

He told the court that in an interview, Bagwell said: “I am gutted for the lad. He’s actually really hurt but he shouldn’t have done what he did.”

Sentencing Bagwell, Judge Roger Jarvis said: “I can quite understand that sometimes people take the view that if a person intends upon another person’s private address late at night whilst they are drunk and some misfortune befalls them, that’s their fault. Unfortunately for you, the way that you responded was with the weapon.”

He added: “To have gone out there with that breadknife in your hands was reckless and criminal.

“The penetration was 2cm. It could have been so much worse – it could have been a tragedy. The general public are very anxious when they hear about people using knives. There must be a deterrent to others.”