A thug has escaped jail for a street attack which has ruined the life of a bright young graduate who suffered horrific brain injuries.
Joseph Micklewright was out celebrating his 18th birthday when he felled a passer-by in the street because he thought he was trying to chat up his girlfriend.
He felled victim Richard Livsey, aged 27, who suffered a severely fractured skull and has been left with permanent brain damage which has ended his hopes of a career.
Micklewright escaped jail despite a Judge at Exeter Crown Court being read victim impact statements from Mr Livsey and his parents detailing the horrific ongoing effects.
Mr Livsey's statement said: "My parents think I was lucky to survive but there are days when I wish I had died rather than live with the trauma.
"My months in hospital felt like a prison sentence except it was worse than that because I was trapped not just physically in a body which would not work but also with paranoid thoughts do severe I considered suicide and tried to jump out of the window of the hospital.
"The attack has stolen the sound of silence. I have been left with deafening tinnitus which prevents me sleeping and provides a continual and unbroken link and reminder of the trauma."
He said he has lost his vitality and energy and his hopes of a good career, private life and a family have all been wrecked.
His mother said:"It is heartbreaking to see an intelligent and vibrant young son lose his personality and become trapped in depression and desperation."
Micklewright inflicted the injuries in an attack in the centre of Torquay in February last year when Mr Livsey was on his way to a club after watching a rugby game.
He carried out the attack in full view of two policemen and two different CCTV systems but still denied it and claimed he was acting in self-defence.
Micklewright, now 19, of Park Road, Torquay, denied causing grievous bodily harm but was convicted and jailed for 12 months, suspended for two years with 200 hours unpaid community work and ordered him to attend a thinking skills course as part of 18 months supervision. He will pay £250 costs.
Recorder Miss Sarah Vaughan-Jones said:"The victim impact statements speak movingly of the loss of confidence, the life changing effects and the inability to work more than part time.
"I bear that in mind but the sentence is not only driven by the harm done, however appalling for the victim. I have to consider the level of culpability and the lack of an intention to cause really serious harm."
She said she was also considering evidence from a building company which employs Micklewright and is willing to give him an apprenticeship, his young age at the time of the offence, and the fact he has stayed out of trouble since.
Mr Rupert Taylor, defending, said the offence had not been pre planned in any way and could be seen as self-defence which went over the top.
