Dog walker beaten with hockey stick by top horse trainer says his jail term is too soft
A man who was beaten with a hockey stick by a Grand National coach while walking his dog on his property described the sentence as “overly lenient” and said he was appealing it through official channels.
Martin Dandridge, 72, was shot multiple times by Richard Evan Rhys Williams, 54, also known as Evan Williams, in Llancarfan, Vale of Glamorgan, during the night.
During the attack in December 2024, Dandridge suffered a broken arm and “ongoing pain” in his forearm.
It was Williams sentenced to three years in prison On Tuesday, however, Dandridge said he was “defying tolerance” through a scheme overseen by the Attorney General’s Office.
In a victim impact statement, Dandridge, from Swindon, said he thought he was “going to die” during the attack.
“That moment is still vivid in my mind,” he added.
Dandridge also said the attack had left a lasting physical and mental impact and that he struggled with “the memory of feeling completely helpless and vulnerable.”
“Sadly, because of the assault and what has followed, I don’t feel like the same person I was before,” he said, adding that he still has problems with his left forearm and hand despite the assault taking place years ago.
Dandridge still has problems with his left arm and hand from the attack in 2024 [Jam Press]
Last month, a jury at Cardiff Crown Court found Williams guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent.
Sentencing him on Tuesday, Recorder Angharad Price described it as a “horrible offence”.
“You had a choice that night. You could have waited and let the police deal with the situation, but instead you rushed back to the paddock to deal with the problem yourself.
“It is never acceptable to take the law into your own hands.”
Williams was sentenced to three years in prison on Tuesday [South Wales Police]
Dandridge told the BBC he believed Williams’ sentence was “unduly lenient given the aggravating features of the case, including the use of a weapon and the injuries sustained.”
He said he would challenge this through. Extremely Light Sentence The scheme allows anyone to request a review of Crown Court sentences if they think they are too low.
A spokesman for the attorney general’s office said legal officers had received a request to consider the sentence of Richard Evan Rhys Williams under the plan.
They have 28 days to decide whether a case is considered too lenient, and if so they can request the Court of Appeal to consider it.
