A yob broke a man's jaw in two places as he tried to separate a fight outside a nightclub.
Jordan Yates, 23, hit his victim, Hayden Morris, so hard he caused a double jaw fracture and left him with permanent numbness in his lower lip. Liverpool Crown Court heard there were issues between Yates and the victim's friend, John Atherton, about a woman which led to the pair being kicked out of The Imperial club in St Helens.
They continued squaring up to each other outside and Mr Morris stepped in to intervene. He was concerned his friend was drunk and alone, and Yates had other men with him, said David Birrell, prosecuting.
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CCTV footage played to the court showed the scene and powerfully built Yates striking Mr Morris “with a short arm jab” which left him with two fractures to his jaw and a lost tooth. He needed surgery to insert metal plates and also had two other teeth removed.
The surgeon said that the lip numbness following such an injury was likely to resolve though did not always do so and Mr Birrell said that two and half years later the victim still has it. He had initially not been able to eat for two months and was worried about his appearance on his young son.
He is now anxious about going out and would rather stay at home. Yates, of Thirlmere Avenue, St Helens, pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm on December 21, 2019.
Judge Denis Watson, QC, sentenced the young dad to 12 months imprisonment suspended for two years. He ordered him to carry out 150 hours unpaid work and 20 days rehabilitation activities.
He also imposed a three year restraining order and said he would have ordered him to pay his victim compensation if he had the financial means to pay. Bernice Campbell, defending, said Yates, who pleaded guilty on the day his trial had been due to start, had found it hard to watch the CCTV footage.
She said the defendant fell off the back of a wagon at work and smashed his skull, leaving him with short term memory problems and he has been on state benefits since. He is assisted by his partner and he looks after his aunt, who has various health issues, and who told in a letter how she believed that without him “I would be dead," said Miss Campbell.
He is hoping to return to work when his mental health has improved, she added.
