A man who pushed another man down a set of stairs in a suspected homophobic attack has been given a 12-month suspended prison sentence. 

Archie Stevenson, 28, attacked the victim, in his 40s, at the Hoggs and Heifers pub in Bentham in the Yorkshire Dales on 29 September 2024. 

The victim was enjoying a drink with his husband before walking over to use the toilets when Stevenson pushed him down a steep flight of narrow stairs. 

He initially lost consciousness and sustained a large cut to the back of his head, a cut to his left ear, a black eye, and a swollen knee. 

The victim reported the incident to the police as he believes he was targeted because of his sexual orientation.

Earlier that evening he recalled that other men in the same pub made an alleged comment saying, ”That’s one of the gays there”.

Investigating officer PC Ruth Daley from North Yorkshire Police said: “The victim has shown a huge amount of resilience throughout the investigation process, and a large part of his motivation in reporting this incident is to encourage other victims to report their experiences to the police.

“Thankfully incidents of this nature are fairly rare, but this outcome sends out a clear message that this behaviour will not be tolerated”.

According to North Yorkshire Police, the victim and his partner have made the decision to sell their leisure caravan and now will no longer visit the Yorkshire Dales due to the incident. 

Stevenson, of Bentber New Road in Thornton in Lonsdale, also received a £1000 fine, alcohol abstinence order for 100 Days and must complete 150 hours of unpaid work.