The incident occurred in Pakistan
A lawyer who smashed a chair over a senior civil judge’s head following what has been described as a “minor” disagreement has been jailed for over 18 years.
Imran Manj is said to have attacked judge Khalid Mehmood during a hearing on April 25 in the city of Jaranwala, Pakistan, local news station ARY News reports. The shocking attack left the judge in hospital suffering from a wound to the head.
According to Pakistan Today, Manj fled the scene but was later arrested by local police after judges threatened to go on strike and a case was filed against him in an anti-terrorism court.
The lawyer was sentenced to 18 years and six months in prison on Thursday, and fined Rs250,000 (£2,830).
Although rare, Legal Cheek has in the past reported on instances of violence against judges.
In 2017, a litigant-in-person was sentenced to 20 weeks in prison after rugby tackling a judge who had popped out from court to grab a sandwich. Speaking at the time, Judge Robin Tolson said the incident was something that “goes with the territory” of the job. Meanwhile, over in Kazakhstan, a lawyer hit headlines in 2014 when CCTV footage emerged of him repeatedly striking a judge with a fly swatter.