A man who jumped into an argument to protect a woman as she was being attacked, landed in court charged with fighting.Michael Payne was given an absolute discharge in Magistrates’ Court for the offence.The 38-year-old Pembroke resident intervened in a fight that took place outside Flanagan’s Irish Pub, Restaurant and Sports Bar on Saturday, around 1am.Officers were called to Front Street where they found Mr Payne on the ground fighting a third man, Ralph Robinson.The pair continued fighting even after officers ordered them to stop. They were subsequently charged with affray.Prosecutor Carrington Mahoney told the court that the incident began with an altercation between 29-year-old Sandys resident Zachary Simmons and a woman, identified to the court as Susan Simons.Mr Simmons allegedly punched Ms Simons in the face during the altercation. He denied one charge of assault yesterday in court.Mr Payne attempted to intervene after the blow was dealt, but was attacked by Robinson, of Sandys.The 29-year-old yesterday pleaded guilty to taking part in the fight.All three men appeared in Magistrates’ Court in custody.Duty counsel Leo Mills meanwhile told the court that Mr Payne acted as a good Samaritan in the incident, coming to the defence of the victim.“In this case, Payne did his duty as a responsible member of the community. He saw someone who was in distress. The young lady was not in a position to defend herself,” Mr Mills said.“In an act of chivalry not often seen these days, he came to her defence. As a result, he was himself attacked.”Robinson said the altercation was the result of a misunderstanding. He said he was only trying to get his friend, Mr Simmons, into a cab so he would go home.Senior Magistrate Archibald Warner said that based on the evidence the police were right to do their duty and arrest both men as they continued to fight after they were ordered to stop.However, he gave Mr Payne an absolute discharge, based on the details of the case.Mr Warner handed Robinson a 12-month conditional discharge, noting his otherwise clean criminal record.He released Mr Simmons on $2,000 bail and ordered him to return to court on June 9 for trial.