by Alison Leon
15 October 2010
The actions of a man accused of assaulting his girlfriend with a picture frame were blamed on a brain injury sustained five years ago, a court in Worcester has been told.
Kevin Swain was found guilty of actual bodily harm after he smashed the frame over girlfriend Nina Scattergood’s head, causing an injury which needed five stitches.
But his barrister asked the court for clemency following the revelation that Swain had himself been the victim of a violent assault in which a brick had fractured his skull, causing a ‘dramatic change’ in his personality and leading to anger management issues.
“Fate dealt him a catastrophic blow when he was the innocent victim of a brutal attack in a case of mistaken identity,” Paul Cook told Worcester Crown Court.
The court also heard that Swain had developed a serious drink dependency following his injury, which was partly the cause of the attack upon Ms Scattergood on October 27th last year.
Judge John Cavell, reports the Worcester News, said the court has sympathy towards him, considering the circumstances, but that a duty to protect the public was the overrding consideration.
He imposed a 24-week jail sentence suspended for 12 months and ordered 12 months’ supervision.