A man who knocked his ex-stepfather out following a drunken argument has walked free from court.
Adrian Whittaker delivered several blows to his victim’s head leaving him unconscious on the floor after he tried to stop him getting into a taxi, which drove away as the man hit the ground.
Teesside Crown Court watched CCTV footage of the violent confrontation as Whittaker walked away after the initial assault before returning a couple of minutes later to deliver another heavy blow to the man.
Shaun Dryden, prosecuting, said the attack left the man needing three titanium plates inserting to repair a fractured cheekbone and he also suffered a fractured wrist following the assault on April 30, last year.
“The victim is being tended to by a neighbour, he is still prostrate on the ground at this point,” he said.
“The victim was taken to the neighbour’s house and the defendant returns, he pushes the neighbour out of the way and struck the victim for a second time and he falls to the ground.”
In a victim personal statement, the man said he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of the assault and was no longer able to work as a volunteer blood bike rider due to his wrist fracture.
Whittaker, of Instow Close, Stockton, pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm after he assaulted his mother's former husband following a drunken row.
Nicci Horton, mitigating, said there had been conflict between her client and the victim due to his relationship with his mother.
She said the couple were now divorced and there had been no contact between the pair since the assault.
Ms Horton urged the judge to suspend the sentence for the former member of the armed forces, who endured two tours of duty in Iraq and one in Afghanistan, as he had struggled since leaving military.
Recorder Andrew Sutcliffe KC sentenced Whittaker to 18 months in custody suspended for two years.
He said: “The injuries he received were serious, a broken wrist and her was required to have an operation to his cheekbone which required three titanium plates and 15 screws to be inserted into his cheekbone.”
Whittaker was also ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work and attend 25 rehabilitation activity requirement days.
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