James Hughes entered a guilty plea to one count of possessing a knife blade or a sharp pointed article in a public place when he appeared before magistrates in July. He had been caught carrying the blade in Hereford's Commercial Road on October 17 last year, Hereford magistrates heard. The 27-year-old did not have good reason or lawful authority to be in possession of a kitchen knife in the street. Magistrates said the offence was so serious that only a custodial sentence could be justified, as Hughes had carried the blade in a public place, including in a hospital. Hughes, of Portland Street, Hereford, was handed a four-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, while the kitchen knife was ordered to be forfeited and destroyed.