A 19-YEAR-OLD has been given a community order and a driving ban for a string of offences, including drink driving when he was involved in a four vehicle crash in Downton.

Joshua Archer, of West Mills Road in Fordingbridge, previously pleaded guilty to drink driving, affray, being drunk and disorderly, and assaulting an emergency worker, and appeared at Salisbury Magistrates’ Court for sentencing on Friday (October 2).

Prosecutor Ben Worthington said police received a call reporting a four vehicle collision on The Borough in Downton on July 19.

A Vauxhall Astra, driven by Archer, had collided with a Ford Focus and two further vehicles had been damaged. The collision also involved two houses. The proportion of alcohol in his breath was 58 microgrammes in 100 millilitres of breath, the court heard.

Pictures of the incident were shown to the court and Mr Worthington described it as a “relatively nasty collision” and that “quite a significant amount of damage was caused”.

On July 2, the defendant was arrested for being drunk and disorderly after making abusive 999 calls, swearing at the call handlers, and was also shouting in the street making threats that he should be “taken away”.

Mr Worthington said officers attended and found him “abusive” and that he smelt of alcohol and was acting “generally disorderly”. He was arrested and while in custody assaulted an officer with a “closed fist” which struck the officer in the chest over his body armour.

Archer was also jointly charged with a 15-year-old girl and 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, for an affray on February 8, 2019. The incident happened on the ground floor of Central Car Park in the Maltings, Salisbury. The court heard the defendant, along with two others, assaulted a 15-year-old boy. Archer punched him along with one of the others before leaving the area. When interviewed he admitted his involvement but said it was “self defence”.

Defending Archer, Trevor Line said in relation to the affray Archer and his friends had been told a girl was being beaten up and that it was thought the person had a knife on him. Mr Line said: “Mr Archer decided on the spur of the moment to punch a single person with one punch. That was his involvement in the matter. He accepts having reconsidered the matter that whilst he believed he was acting in defence of others he has quickly reviewed that decision and pleaded guilty at the first opportunity.”

Regarding the incidents in July, Mr Line said the defendant had broken up with his girlfriend, which he had “taken badly” and had “started drinking to excess”.

Mr Line told the court Archer had “matured substantially”, adding: “He now finds himself in a far better position than he did then.”

Archer was given an 18 month community order, including 20 rehabilitation activity days. Archer will also have to complete 150 hours of unpaid work and was disqualified from driving for 15 months. The interim disqualification, granted by the court in August, will be taken off the 15 month period. The defendant was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £95 and court costs of £85. No separate penalty was given for the drunk and disorderly offence.