Charlie Edis went on racist knife rampage in Basildon

Charlie Edis, 19, of Buckerills, was captured on CCTV running shirtless around Pitsea with a knife in his hand, apparently chasing somebody.

He stabbed one knife into a bin in a fury, then went into his house and got a second one to continue his violent tirade.

But sentencing guidelines led to a prison term of 12 months, which new rules brought in last month said had to be suspended.

"I have no choice but to suspend sentence despite my wishes or my better judgement," said Judge Richard Conley.

Essex Police were called to a “neighbour dispute” on March 2 in which “the defendant made racial slurs towards a child from a neighbouring address,” said prosecutor Harry Hewitt.

The child had been “playing on a communal green” when Edis was heard to shout the C-word at him, along with racial abuse, ordering him to get off of the grass.

A supporter of Edis laughed in the public gallery when the racist abuse was read out at Wednesday’s court hearing.

After the abuse was shouted, said Mr Hewitt, the incident “escalated and involved the defendant giving chase to neighbours down the street with a knife. An independent witness had seen that happening.

“The defendant returned from that chase, appeared to be angry, stabbed a wheelie bin with it, left the knife lodged in the bin, went into his address and came out with a second knife, waving it around in a threatening manner towards the neighbours.”

Edis appeared at Basildon Crown Court on Wednesday (April 29) to be sentenced for four offences: possessing a bladed article, racially aggravated harassment, using threatening words or behaviour, and criminal damage.

The court heard he had convictions for six previous offences, including one of threatening somebody with a bladed article in a public place.

Defence barrister Shelley Griffith said his client claimed he had been “provoked” and “bullied”.

Diagnosed with autism, learning difficulties, anxiety and depression, he “overreacted”, said the lawyer.

Judge Richard Conley said that was “an understatement”.

“He overreacted to the point where someone could have been killed or seriously hurt,” he said.

“There is CCTV of him running, holding the knife, bare chested, obviously enraged.”

After stabbing the wheelie bin and going indoors, said the judge, “He had the chance at that point to de-escalate and he did the exact opposite.

“He escalated it by going back into the fray, holding a kitchen knife. It could have had catastrophic consequences.”

He asked Mr Griffiths: “What on earth was he thinking? What was his end game in that situation, confronting someone with a kitchen knife? What was he hoping to achieve?”

Mr Griffiths said his client maintained his goal was “just to defend himself. He never had any intention to use it.”

Judge Conley told Edis: "Knife crime is a scourge of the world in which we all have to live. Every single day of every single year we have the sad experience of learning of yet another young person killed or seriously hurt by a knife.

"On this occasion, it is nothing short of a miracle that nobody was killed or seriously hurt by the knife or knives that you were carrying.

"A local resident in Buckerills, where you happen to live, heard some sort of disturbance and observed you in possession of a knife, using appalling, highly offensive towards a child.

"The mere fact that you were using such disgusting and offensive language in the presence of your neighbours and your friends, causing disharmony and upset to local residents, sowing the seeds of racial disharmony amongst your community, is serious enough.

"But the fact is that you in a state of anger and rage, were in possession of a knife and making threatening actions towards a child and others."

He would have sentenced Edis to two years, he said - but sentencing rules demanded reductions for his young age, mental health issues and guilty pleas.

That knocked it down to one year - and new rules brought in last month say all sentences of one year or less must be suspended.