Suspended sentence for engineer who glassed victim in Oxford's Thirst nightclub

Douglas Rose - described by his partner as the 'nicest person she had ever met' - was out in Thirst nightclub on Park End Street, Oxford, on September 4 last year when he hit his victim using a glass.

Sentencing him at Oxford Crown Court this week, Recorder John Ryder QC said it was ‘bewildering’ and ‘incomprehensible’ why the 34-year-old professional engineer had launched the attack.

READ MORE: Jail for TikTok predator who sent sexually-explicit messages to girls

Heavily-intoxicated Rose could provide little help, telling the police officers who interviewed him that it was not the sort of thing he would do. He later spoke to a probation officer of his remorse and said he ‘couldn’t believe’ his actions.

It was suggested that the victim had stepped in after seeing being ‘bothering or irritating’ women in the nightclub.

CCTV showed the two men coming together for around a minute-and-a-half before the second man stepped back, having been hit with the glass.

The victim collapsed outside, bleeding heavily from a cut on his face, and began convulsing. Luckily, the injury was no worse than a cut to the left-side of his face, which was sutured at hospital. Since the assault he had had difficulty sleeping and suffered from anxiety when going out.

Imposing 12 months' imprisonment suspended for 18 months, Recorder Ryder told the defendant: “Incidents of this sort blight social environments. Accordingly, there has to be an element of deterrence in sentencing offences of violence which occur in public places.”

He added: “You know how serious it is. You could, in my view, have been charged with a still more serious offence.

“I say that simply to emphasise to you the gravity of the position in which you put yourself. It could very well have been seen as a situation where you struck him intending to cause him really serious harm

“Well, you weren’t charged with that and you won’t be sentenced for that but that is one potential consequence that would have flowed after that.

READ MORE: Cowley barmaid assaulted on night of Euros heartbreak

“The other, which I am afraid I see all too often, is that someone else strikes out with a glass and catches someone in the face  I have plenty of experience of people being blinded in those circumstances.

“The gravity of this sort of incident in a social environment is one simply doesn’t know what is going to result from it.

“I’ve given you an example – and worse, frankly, where arteries are severed. It doesn’t need much imagination to realise where this could have led.”

The assault took place at Thirst nightclub in Park End Street, Oxford

Rose, now of Lyon, France, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to causing grievous bodily harm. He had no previous convictions, was a professional engineer in a steady relationship and had not been out drinking since the assault.

He must pay £1,483 in compensation and £425 in costs.

Read more from this author

This story was written by Tom Seaward. He joined the team in 2021 as Oxfordshire's court and crime reporter.  

To get in touch with him email: Tom.Seaward@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @t_seaward