A HOTEL chef who pulled a foot-long kitchen knife on a Sheffield taxi driver has walked free from court - after it was revealed he suffers from Asperger's Syndrome.
Sheffield Crown Court heard William Lawrence Judge, aged 21, had drunk a litre of Bacardi before pulling out the blade outside a city centre nightclub.
He has Asperger's disorder, a condition similar to autism, which cause difficulties with social
interaction and communication.
Richard Thyne, prosecuting, said Judge had been drinking in the Nursery Tavern on Ecclesall Road last November when he called a cab to take him to The Leadmill.
He said: "On arrival, he got out of the taxi and hung his coat on some railings. He hadn't paid for the journey and the complainant shouted at him. The defendant approached the driver's window and produced a large 16 inch kitchen knife. He pushed it through the window and began waving it around."
In a victim statement read to the court, taxi driver Sayed Shah said: "I was scared but I don't think he was trying to scare me, I think he wanted to drop it into the taxi so it appeared it was mine, not his."
Mr Thyne said Mr Shah shut the taxi window and the knife fell into the cab. It was recovered by a club doorman along with a further kitchen knife found in Judge's coat pocket and another blade tucked into his belt.
Judge - a chef at The Marriott hotel in Nether Edge - admitted possessing a bladed article in public and using threatening behaviour.
The court heard Judge, of Ecclesall Road, Hunters Bar, had previous convictions for similar offences.
In February 2006 he went his father's house with a steak knife and a flick knife, and last June he was arrested after a member of the public saw him taking a large knife from his pocket in public. Ian Storey, defending, said Judge had turned to alcohol after suffering bullying and alienation because of his Asperger's.
Sentencing him to a six month jail term, suspended for 12 months, Recorder Andrew Dallas warned Judge it was his last chance.
He said.: "You must understand this: what you did is very, very serious. Knives on the streets can lead to terrible things even if you don't intend that when you take them with you, and members of the public are very frightened by knives on the street.
"People can end up injured and even killed when knives are around."
Judge was also given 12-months supervision, nine-month alcohol treatment, and ordered to carry out 50 hours of unpaid work.
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