A drink and drug-crazed thug launched a terrifying hammer attack on police officers telling them: "It was either this or I go on a killing spree."
David Croly, 35, had been on a 'two day bender', Manchester Crown Court heard, before the horrific incident unfolded on Portland Street in the city centre.
Shortly after midnight on Aprili 19 last year, Croly saw two police officers passing in a van and stuck his middle finger up at them, for reasons he was unable to explain.
Pc Harrison, who was driving the van, turned around in the street and approached Croly to have a word with him, the court heard.
As he pulled up, he realised Croly, from Clifton, Salford, was armed with a 12-inch hammer.
Outlining what happened, Judge Suzanne Goddard described the weapon as a "frightening looking thing."
"You struck the passenger window and it shattered over the officers," she said.
"You put your head through the window and pulled your arm back as if to strike the officer.
"The officers pushed you away and used Taser such was their concern."
Fortunately, the two officers were able to take Croly to the ground and quickly detain him without suffering any injuries.
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But the court heard Pc Harrison was understandably left 'fearing for his safety' during the attack.
Croly later told officers he felt he may have suffered a drug-induced psychosis, but other than that there was "little explanation" as to why he launched the assault, the judge said.
After he was detained, Croly told officers: "It was either this or I go on a killing spree."
The court heard Croly has a long history of criminal offending, including 11 convictions for 14 offences.
In 2014, the Manchester Evening News told how he was jailed for terrorising clubbers in the city centre in separate incidents.
He left one man with 'catastrophic' injuries by striking him in the head with his elbow outside Yates' bar on Portland Street.
The man had earlier challenged him for behaving aggressively and Croly waited several hours before attacking the victim from behind.
While on bail, Croly was arrested after smuggling a combat knife into a club and onto the dancefloor.
Bouncers spotted him showing the weapon to pals and tracked him to Bar Rogue where police were alerted.
Croly pleaded guilty to GBH and possessing an offensive weapon and was jailed for two-and-a-half years for those offences.
Defending him at Tuesday's hearing, his lawyer James Preece told the court: "There is a disturbing pattern in the way he behaves when he on one of his binges.
"The background is drugs and intoxication.
"He acknowledges this is a problem."
Croly admitted charges of assaulting an emergency worker, making threats with an offensive weapon and criminal damage.
He was sentenced to 16 months, four months, and two months in prison in respect of each charge, to run concurrently.
Judge Goddard sentencing said: "You had been on a two day drink and drugs bender.
"Your use of drink and drugs is clearly a problem for you, you didn't recognise that.
"There is only one person that can sort themselves out and it's you.
"If you don't get a grip on these problems then you will be before the courts on more and more serious offences."
