An on-going feud between two men culminated in one of them slashing the other with a craft knife in the street in front of neighbours, a court heard.

Michael Davies, who claimed he was, himself, attacked by the other man earlier in the day, twice sought him out, seeking revenge, later on Friday May 10.

Teesside Crown Court heard that Davies confronted him hours later as he was standing outside a neighbour’s home, in Guisborough.

Shaun Dryden, prosecuting, accused him of talking about him to others, before grabbing him and thrusting him against a wall.

(Image: Cleveland Police)

Later, as the victim was again standing outside the neighbour’s home, Davies was seen watching him from the front of flats where he was living.

Davies then approached, threatening to kill him, before launching at him, producing the craft knife from his pocket during the scuffle and using it to stab the victim in the thigh.

Neighbours intervened, pulling the defendant away, while medical assistance was sought for the injured man, who was taken to hospital.

The 50-year-old victim, said to be of much smaller build than Davies, received stitches to the thigh and was given antibiotics to prevent infection of the wound.

Mr Dryden told the court that the complainant has since suffered with nightmares and now fears going out, living as something of a recluse, in the wake of the incident.

Davies, who was arrested, told police he placed the knife in his pocket after the earlier confrontation and conceded that he acted out of anger, rather than due to fear.

The 51-year-old defendant, of Helmsley House, Guisborough, admitted charges of wounding with intent, assault by beating and possessing a knife in public.

Mr Dryden said Davies has no previous offences for violence on his record, but he was convicted over a bomb hoax, in 1995.

(Image: The Northern Echo)

Gary Wood, in mitigation, said the defendant has no relevant convictions and has expressed remorse over his actions, pleading guilty at an early stage in proceedings.

Mr Wood said there was, “a degree of provocation” prior to the incident and the defendant had sought to complain over the alleged assault on himself earlier in the day, but the police, “weren’t interested”.

Judge Timothy Stead told Mr Wood there appeared to be, “a degree of persistence” in the defendant’s actions over the course of the rest of that day.

Mr Wood said the defendant had a difficult background and suffered with some mental health issues.

But he said he has reacted positively to being in custody since the incident, achieving enhanced status, having been given a job on reception at HMP Leeds, where he has been detained.

Judge Stead said the defendant reached the age of 51 without any previous convictions for violence, but there were, “clear signs he has difficulty managing his feelings, on occasions”.

The judge said it was not a straightforward incident on May 10, but a culmination of events, having started with a common assault.

He told Davies he had gone armed with the knife, which he produced in the course of the confrontation and the injuries inflicted could have proved far more serious.

Judge Stead said it was, “a deliberate act, plainly intending to cause really serious harm.”

He said there may have been some, “circumstantial provocation”, but the defendant should not have responded as he did.

The judge imposed a 32-month sentence, reduced by a third on the four-year sentence he said he would have passed had the defendant taken the case to trial.

He also put in place a restraining order prohibiting the defendant from approaching or contacting the victim, for eight years.