Incident Overview
A 77-year-old man was recorded on body-camera footage threatening to "lump" a female traffic warden after a pay-and-display machine rejected his coins, a court was informed.
Stephen Doughty, a retired lorry driver, became enraged over parking enforcement concerns in a market town when he feared receiving a ticket from the sole warden present.
The court viewed footage showing Doughty shouting that it would be the "last ticket" the warden would issue.
Doughty, who pleaded guilty to assault by beating, stated he was attempting to insert money into the machine for a £2.50 parking stay but became frustrated when the machine rejected his coins.
The footage depicted him swearing, making violent threats, and physically assaulting traffic warden Wendy Williams.
Williams was conducting a check of a pay-and-display machine at the Seven Stars car park in Welshpool, Powys.
Details of the Confrontation
The court heard that Williams checked her handheld device, which showed no parking ticket had been purchased for the vehicle.
When Williams approached, Doughty initially told her he was waiting for his partner but soon became agitated, exiting his car and walking toward the warden.
Doughty began shouting abuse and issuing threats, aggressively questioning Williams if she doubted his claim of waiting for his partner.
"Do you want me to lump you now?"
"I'll thump you straight in the gob."
Doughty slapped Williams' hand as she used her handheld device, described her role as "doing a scum job," pointed at her face, warned her to "watch it," and slapped her hand again.
Williams informed him that his actions constituted assault, to which Doughty responded with further verbal abuse.
He called her a "nuisance" and told her to leave before returning to his vehicle.
Body-worn footage presented in court also captured a civilian employee of Dyfed-Powys Police confronting Doughty.
"Don't do that. Don't put your hands on her,"
"I saw that. Apologise. She's on her own doing her job."
Following the November incident, Williams allowed Doughty an additional 10 minutes to purchase a parking ticket from the pay-and-display machine.
Impact and Police Interview
Prosecutor Helen Tench stated the assault had a "detrimental impact" on the traffic warden, although no physical injuries were reported.
In a police interview, Doughty expressed frustration that the machine would not accept coins and remarked that police were "more interested in ripping off a pensioner."
Defence and Mitigation
Defence solicitor Robert Hanratty noted that Doughty, who appeared in court using a wheelchair, accepted responsibility for his conduct.
"He will be the first to admit that when he gets agitated, he does swear,"
Hanratty added that the Probation Service acknowledged Doughty suffers from anxiety.
"He very much regrets this incident. She was doing her job, and she puts up with a lot of stick.
"Unfortunately, he chose to vent his frustration on Ms Williams."
Probation officer Julian Davies reported that Doughty became "very frustrated" when money repeatedly fell out of the machine and felt the warden was dismissive.
"He deeply regrets his actions and didn't mean to assault the warden,"
It was noted that Doughty, a retired HGV driver, has two prior convictions for battery and threatening behaviour.
Sentencing
Magistrates fined Doughty £500 and ordered him to pay £200 in compensation to Ms Williams.
He was also required to pay a £200 victim surcharge and £85 in court costs, totaling £985.
