Court / Unexplained assault on family members results in £8,000 compensation order

A MAN who attacked his father and stepmother for no apparent reason – leaving the woman permanently injured – has been ordered to pay £8,000 in compensation to his victims.

Marc Watt, from Lerwick’s North Road, left his stepmother with permanent disfigurement after the random attack on 16 June last year.

Sheriff Ian Cruickshank told Lerwick Sheriff Court on Wednesday that the circumstances of the assault were “utterly bizarre” given no explanation could be given.

Defence agent Gregor Kelly said the 52-year-old was “ashamed” and “utterly remorseful” over the situation.

The court previously heard how Watt attended the pair’s home to collect a birthday present before launching into an assault on the couple.

He called the police himself hours after the attack, saying he “felt sick” about it.

Kelly said rum had been drunken prior to the assault, but there had been no animosity or disagreements.

He told the court that Watt could not recall the assault, but remembers later waking up at his uncle’s house with a sense of “foreboding”.

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Kelly highlighted a previous letter from an NHS official relating to a possible health matter but said this could not be used to explain the offence.

The solicitor said his client wished to apologise “for all that he has done” – particularly to his stepmother, who received the worst of the injuries – and said he “wished he could turn back time”.

The court previously heard how Watt arrived at the home at around 4pm and did not appear to be intoxicated in any way.

At around 6.50pm, Watt launched himself at his father and started punching him repeatedly on the head.

When his stepmother stepped in, Watt “turned his attention to her” and began repeatedly punching her instead.

“At no point did he say anything to the two complainers,” procurator fiscal Duncan Mackenzie previously told the court. “There was no discernible reason for him to act the way he did.”

While the man was “fortunate” only to suffer slight swelling and bruising, his partner was “less fortunate”.

Both of her eardrums were ruptured as a result of the attack, and she sustained a significant injury to her left eye.

The court heard how that injury required surgery, which would have required a bone under her eye to be pushed back into place.

However the woman refused to have the surgery, due to a fear of general anaesthetics, which meant she was left with a permanent protrusion and bruising.

She continues to experience pain due to the injury, and has to take painkillers daily, the fiscal previously said.

At court on Wednesday Kelly referred to letters written in support of Watt, including from his employer who described him as a calm and often a “peace-maker”.

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Sheriff Ian Cruickshank said the assaults were “extremely serious” and added that there will be no doubt the offence will have a “profound and lasting effect both physically and psychologically” on the victims.

But he highlighted that there was no suggestion Watt had a “propensity” towards violence and added that he was a first offender.

Sheriff Cruickshank also noted Watt’s “unreserved and genuinely felt” remorse.

He said that based on sentencing guidelines, custody should only be imposed if there were no other alternatives.

Sheriff Cruickshank felt there was an alternative in the shape of a community payback order and compensation.

He was given 200 hours of unpaid work to complete, and told to pay £1,500 in compensation to his father and £6,500 to his stepmother.

A non-harassment order was put in place for five years which prohibits contact other than any which comes through a restorative justice programme, such as Space2face.