Man who threw missiles and punched member of the public during Bristol unrest jailed

A man who threw missiles, punched a member of the public and ran at people during the Bristol protests has been jailed for more than two years.

James Maine, 44, of Kingswood, appeared at Bristol Crown Court on Tuesday 17 September, where he was sentenced to 28 months.

The Judge, Peter Blair, said the 44-year-old’s involvement was ‘persistent’ and described him as ‘one of the central individuals’ carrying out the violent disorder.

CCTV obtained during the police investigation shows Maine running at members of the public and throwing a punch.

Another man was jailed for four weeks on Tuesday 17 September after pleading guilty to a racially-aggravated public order offence.

Shane Dennis shouted racist remarks in Castle Park during the protests.

Judge Blair accepted the 30-year-old was not involved in the violence, but said Dennis’ actions were provocative and helped to fuel the disorder.

Thirty-seven of the 51 people arrested in connection with the protests have been charged so far.

Detective Chief Inspector Tom Herbert said: “There was no excuse for violence that day. The scenes played out in Bristol on 3 August were criminal and disgraceful, and now more than 20 people have been sentenced for what they did on that day.

“Detectives are continuing to investigate, and work with the Crown Prosecution Service and the courts to ensure all those responsible for such reprehensible scenes are brought to justice.”

Our investigation remains ongoing and we continue to ask the public for help identifying a number of people we’d like to speak to.

"Images of the people we wish to identify remain on our online gallery and we’d ask anyone who recognises any of them to contact us via our dedicated online form."