A dad was blinded in one eye after he was beat up by a driver during a petty road rage row in Monsall.
Lewis Cook, 35, punched the victim in the face and arms whilst the man's wife and five month old child watched, after he pulled out in front of him at a road junction.
Manchester Crown Court heard that in the run up to the assault, Cook had been tailgating the man's Toyota Carolla, angrily putting his head and upper torso out of the driver's side window.
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He was also seen to shake his fist at him and throw objects at the car.
The victim eventually stopped at the roadside but Cook also stopped and set about the man.
He suffered a severely damaged retina in the beating and blacked out.
Despite extensive surgery, he lost the sight of his left eye and now faces further surgery for a badly damaged nose, with fears he may go blind in the other eye.
He has to walk with a cane and has since given up his job as a network engineer.
Cook, who has just become a father, was jailed for three years after he admitted causing grievous bodily harm.
The incident took place at 1pm on December 4, 2018 when the victim encountered Cook whilst driving through the city's Monsall district.
Prosecutor Joe Boyd said: ''The victim pulled out of Queens Road onto Rochdale Road and noticed another car driving very close behind him as if to make him go faster.
"He saw the defendant gesturing with his fist in the mirror and described how he was throwing objects out of his window and had his upper torso out of the window.
"The man then heard a sizzling noise coming from a rear window so pulled up at the side of the road. But the defendant also pulled up behind him.
"The complainant was checking for damage on his car when he felt a punch to his right temple. He lost vision and used his hands to cover his face but the defendant then punched him to his arms and he fainted and fell to the floor.
''The defendant then got back into his own car and drove off. The complainant regained consciousness and said he was going to ring the police and for him not to drive off but the defendant told him to ''f*** off.''
"His wife saw the incident and says her husband was checking the car when she saw a male walk up and punch her husband to the face.
"She said the male kept punching my husband and he then fell to the floor. She said: 'He kicked my husband a couple of times once to the face then once to his legs. There was blood coming from his eye.'"
In a statement, the victim said he is still in "extreme trauma" and "extreme pain" over three years on from the assault.
He has required two surgical procedures to his eye in a bid to bring his eyesight back.
''I was in extreme trauma and extreme pain. It is going to be three years since the assault and the pain now is just like it was on day one," he said.
"My nose has been bleeding as it has been damaged and I am still waiting for a surgery date. I also have arthritis in my knee.
''I was a highly skilled network engineer and I can no longer continue work in this profession because my hands are shaky and because of my eyesight.
"I cannot even look at myself in the mirror. I have lost my eye, my job and my happiness. I walk with a cane now and my life will never be the same again."
The court heard that Cook, of Monsall, had previous convictions for violence including assault, affray, possession of an offensive weapon, racial harassment and battery.
In mitigation defence counsel Robert Elias said: "He is a well loved family man and became a father 10 days ago.
"Everyone has driven a car and been frustrated by another driver but I accept most have a mature response and do not react with violence.
"This defendant says he was subject to a particularly difficult piece of driving by the victim.
''He pulled over and this defendant struck out two blows tragically causing a devastating injury to the victim who has now lost the use of his right eye.
"His job prospects of returning to his line of work are now hopeless and he is profoundly sorry for that. This was a very brief incident which was short in duration but the injury was catastrophic.
"He has grown up more and made a real attempt to sort his life out."
Sentencing, Mr Recorder Michael Smith told Cook: ''He has lost the sight in his right eye. There was damage to his retina and two operations were unsuccessful.
"He has suffered extreme trauma and extreme pain. In addition, he suffered damage to his nasal cavity which needs surgery and it could result in him losing sight in his left eye leaving him permanently blind.
''He has not been able to carry on his career as a network engineer because of the loss of his eyesight. From the very first day he has felt traumatised and shaken.
"It haunts him every day. He says he stays awake all of the night and sleeps in the morning. He sees no hope and feels suicidal every day.
"That injury has had a life changing effect on him and his family. I am conscious you became a father 10 days ago. But your behaviour went behind excessive self defence.
"Road rage is a phenomenon that we encounter more and more often these days. Those who drive will face frequent encounters that make us angry. Some will get angry but very few of us will get angry and violent. Road rage is absolutely unacceptable in society."
