30 months for a killer punch

A teenager who killed a London paramedic by punching him in the face in an unprovoked attack has been sentenced to 30 months' jail.

James Hodgkinson, 28, from Islington, suffered serious head injuries when his head hit the floor after a single punch by thug Jacob Dunne, 19. He was taken to hospital but died nine days later. Mr Hodgkinson, who worked for the London Ambulance Service as a trainee paramedic, was out in Nottingham with family and friends when he was set on by Dunne.

Sentencing Dunne to a young offender institute, Mr Justice Flaux said at Nottingham crown court: "This case is yet another example of the mindless and gratuitous violence of the streets of the city, which causes the public concern." Dunne, of Nottingham, had admitted manslaughter.