A man barged into a neighbour's flat and dragged him off his bed before battering him with a 'kettle'.
Arron Waite appeared at Liverpool Crown Court on Monday (February 6) to be sentenced for wounding. Prosecuting, Olivia Beesley told the court that Waite, 34, launched an attack on his neighbour on March 26, 2021.
Waite, then of Anfield Road, banged loudly on the door of neighbour Richard O'Hanlon's flat at around 6pm. When Mr O'Hanlon answered the door, Waite forced his way in and stayed in the flat for around 30 minutes.
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While in the flat, Waite launched an attack on Mr O'Hanlon. He dragged him from his bed to the floor before repeatedly kicking him. Waite then struck his victim in the face with a "heavy object" that Mr O'Hanlon believed was a kettle.
The attack knocked Mr O'Hanlon out. He woke covered in blood at 6am the following day, after being discovered by his landlord.
He suffered a number of injuries, meaning it took him around 30 minutes to get up from the floor. He sustained significant facial swelling, a cut to his left cheek and the sight in his left eye was affected for some time.
Mr O'Hanlon had to stay in hospital for two nights. He has been left with a permanent scar to his face. His victim impact statement was read to the court by Ms Beesley. It said the attack left him unable to speak properly for some time and had made him nervous about meeting new people.
Mr O'Hanlon said he has been looking over his shoulder often since and was worried such an incident could happen again.
Waite, of Leeds Street, Liverpool, had 22 previous convictions for 30 offences. These include possession of a handgun in 2012, battery in 2015 and assaulting an emergency worker in 2020. He pleaded guilty to the charge of unlawful wounding in October.
In mitigation, Rachel Oakdene pointed to the fact that Waite recently completed a drug rehabilitation requirement. The defendant was under the influence of drink and drugs and was subject to a community order at the time of the offence.
Ms Oakdene said her client had a "limited recollection of the events" and that he didn't know what he hit Mr O'Hanlon with. She said Waite and the victim were "hardly known" to each other, but "something must have fuelled" the attack. She added he was "deeply sorry" for his actions.
Referring to a report from Dr Appleyard, Ms Oakdene said Waite suffered from a number of mental health problems. The defendant has a history of ADHD, psychosis and depression, while the doctor suspected he also has schizophrenia.
Ms Oakdene asked Recorder David Knifton KC to consider a suspended sentence. She said prison would not allow Waite to continue with his recovery and told the judge that Waite "could put his offending behind him" if he was spared jail.
However, Recorder Knifton jailed Waite for two years. Passing sentence, he told the defendant: "You battered him".
He said: "You attacked your neighbour in his flat. You dragged him from his bed to the floor before repeatedly kicking him. You hit him in the face with a heavy object and you left him there."
The judge said the victim's personal statement pointed to his "shock and disbelief at the nature of the incident", which he described as a "relatively prolonged assault".
Recorder Knifton added: "You are 34 years of age, little more than half his age". The judge pointed to Waite's "bad record" of offending and said " you showed little or no empathy to your victim".
The judge said he "could not ignore" the fact Waite was subject to a community order at the time of the attack or his previous convictions as he sent him down. As Waite was led to the cells, his partner leant over into the dock to hug him.
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