A Darlington alcoholic whose man hurled racist insults at an Asian family before threatening the couple with a shovel has avoided an immediate prison sentence.
Christopher Barker was infuriated when asked why he was talking to three young children and began to rant and rave at his mother and father.
The 52-year-old man caused damage to the family's front door before heading to their nearby home, retrieving a shovel and threatening to hit them with it, Teesside Crown Court heard.
Rachel Masters, a prosecutor, said Barker used various racial slurs and told them they shouldn't be in this country during his racist outburst on June 7 last year.
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She said: "He became aggressive and started yelling at them and seemed to be intoxicated. They were afraid that he would attack them and began to close the door on him.
โThey managed to half shut it down before I started kicking it; the three children were very upset at the time.โ
The court heard as the woman called the police before Barker emerged from her backyard waving a shovel over her head and launching another vile and racist tirade.
In a victim impact statement, the family said Barker's racist behavior had left them "disgusted" and fearful that he would come back and attack them.
Barker, of Thornton Street, pleaded guilty to causing racially aggravated alarm and distress.
Emma Williams, mitigating, said her client had a long-standing problem with alcohol and had moved from the area where the incident occurred.
She added: โHe has acted incredibly stupidly and was under the influence of alcohol. She doesn't remember saying those things, but she agrees to say them."
Judge Jonathan Carroll sentenced Barker to ten weeks in prison suspended for 12 months for the "hateful, disgusting and racist abuse" he inflicted on the family.
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He said: โYou back it up, not just with words, but with the shovel you brought from home; waving and threatening them with it and yelling more racial slurs.
"I accept that you were drunk and I accept that you have a drinking problem, but there is no place in society for this behavior."
Barker was also ordered to attend 15 days of rehabilitation activity requirements, perform 60 hours of unpaid work and pay ยฃ150 compensation to repair the damage to the door.
