A convicted criminal has been filmed punching his lawyer in the face after being sentenced to 47 years in prison.
Police bodycam footage captured the moment David Chislton – who had pleaded guilty to charges including domestic abuse and arson – launched an attack on Aaron Brockler in an Ohio courtroom.
The two-minute video also showed security officials grab and pin down Chislton, 42, before leading him out of the room.
The lawyer was left with a broken nose and suffered concussion.
According to US media reports, Mr Brockler said he was about to console his client after the news of his sentencing when he was struck in the head.
He said the attack could have been prevented as Chislton’s hands had been handcuffed to his front, rather than his back, which is not usual procedure.
Michael Goldberg, another lawyer who was waiting for his case to be heard in the courtroom, saw the assault.
He told Cleveland.com: “I was watching the sentencing of the defendant, it was a pretty intense situation.
“The judge had given him a long sentence and for a moment he tried to object to the sentence and then he basically just wheeled around and punched his defence lawyer – who was standing to his left – with both hands.”
Chislton was jailed for charges including aggravated arson, assault, domestic violence and cruelty against a companion animal.
In 2017, he held a gun to his girlfriend’s head and threatened to kill her after she accused him of sexually abusing her 15-year-old daughter.
He then set fire to an apartment complex and was also accused of killing a dog.
Chislton had already spent two years behind bars since his arrest.
Case proved, he is an extremely violent individual
Despicable human being and he still has accepted responsibility, I hope he has a exceptionally rough life in prison