Reading Crown Court: Newbury man who spouted racist, homophobic abuse in town centre pub is spared jail

A MAN who launched a homophobic tirade in a town centre pub and racially abused customers has avoided a jail term.

The 32-year-old's latest offending breached a suspended prison sentence order and reports suggested he posed a "very high" risk of causing serious harm to others.

But a judge deferred sentence on Robert Martin Googe for six months after hearing his partner was expecting his baby.

Joe Davidson, prosecuting, told Reading Crown Court on Friday, March 11, how police responded to reports of a man behaving in a threatening manner in The Old Waggon and Horses pub in Market Place, Newbury around 11.50pm last July 20.

Googe was supposedly already barred from the premises for having hurled racist abuse on a previous occasion.

Staff member Gemma McMahon recognised him and asked him to leave, the court heard.

But he became aggressive and called Ms McMahon a "gay lesbian ****" before hurling abuse at a group of black men, calling them the n-word, the judge was told.

Mr Davidson said a security guard, Thomas Field, tried to usher Googe out as he continued to abuse customers and added: "The defendant told Mr Field that God would make him burn in hell, in the knowledge that Mr Field was a Buddhist, because he had told him so."

In a victim impact statement Ms McMahon said she was thick-skinned, but added: "I don't believe anyone should have to be subjected to such vile abuse."

Googe, who used to live in Hermitage but more recently was living in Newtown Road, Newbury, admitted using threatening words and behaviour in breach of a suspended sentence order.

He also has 17 previous convictions for offences including domestic violence, drug possession, drink-driving, assault, affray and stalking.

Mr Davidson concluded by reminding Judge Emma Nott that the suspended sentence should be activated unless it would be manifestly unjust to do so.

Judge Nott initially warned Googe she was likely to jail him for his "hate crimes", telling his barrister, Caroline Stewart: "The risk of him causing serious harm is said to be very high and this is to be taken very seriously.

"I'm very concerned - he can't seem to stop his offending behaviour.

"He has been up before a judge before for a [previous] breach and he doesn't appear to have learned his lesson."

But Ms Stewart said her client was a changed man.

She added: "He would like to apologise to those people; he's mortified to be in court for this kind of behaviour.

"His life has changed so much since he behaved in this way."

Ms Stewart went on: "His partner is expecting a baby very soon so he has every reason to take the opportunity of any chance Your Honour might give him."

She concluded by saying Googe had been tackling his alcohol dependency and had been co-operating with probation services.

Judge Nott said she would defer sentence for six months to give Googe a chance to complete probation programmes and to stay out of trouble.