Sunderland man left his dad in intensive care for six days after violent attack in his own home

Paul Smith, 54, was only able to crawl to his front door when a visitor knocked the next morning and spent six days in intensive care after the attack by Paul Knight, who had been due to start an anger management course.

Newcastle Crown Court heard it is unclear exactly what led to the violence between the father and son, who had been estranged for many years until 2016 but had started meeting up.

Knight, 30, of Cairo Street, Hendon, Sunderland, admitted causing grievous bodily harm on the basis he had "taken self defence too far" and claimed Mr Smith had attacked first.

Mr Recorder Carl Gumsley sentenced Knight to two years behind bars with a three-year restraining order to keep him away from his dad.

The judge said it "may never be clear exactly what happened that night" and told him: "You left him seriously injured, no doubt in a lot of pain and distress and fear. You just left him there.

"I have seen the pools of blood in his property and spattering of blood around that property.

"What took place was clearly a vicious and brutal attack.

"Whatever the circumstances are, whatever the provocation, this was, you say, self-defence gone too far but I cannot help but note you were noted to have no real injuries of any kind, whereas he ended up with broken ribs, broken eye socket, blood in his abdomen, fractures to his back and spent six days in the intensive care unit as a result of what you had done."

The judge accepted there was a "degree of provocation" but added: "These were beating injuries, serious beating injuries of the most serious kind.

"It was a sustained and repeated assault."

Prosecutor Anthony Moore told the court the two men were seen on CCTV returning to Mr Smith's flat after a night out together in July 2018.

Mr Moore said: "There is no evidence of what took place in the flat other than, in effect, the defendant accepting his guilt and what he said in his second police interview, in summary that his father was originally the aggressor and the defendant had taken self-defence too far.

"After the assault the defendant accepted he took the complainant's keys with him. He locked the door of the flat and posted the keys through the door.

"Mr Smith managed to crawl to his bed and later, in the morning, at approximately 9am he was able to crawl to the front door when his daughter arrived."

The court heard Mr Smith, who was bruised, swollen and bleeding was taken to hospital with the catalogue of serious injuries.

Knight told police there had been trouble during the night out when his dad had tried to headbutt someone and he intervened to stop him and they then went back to the flat.

Mr Moore said Knight claimed the trouble continued at Mr Smith's house and added: "He said the complainant had said he would do the same to the defendant and at that point he headbutted the defendant, twice."

In a victim statement, Mr Smith said he was left worried about going out and feared for his and his partner's safety.

Mr Smith said he felt "vulnerable" after the attack, which he felt changed him and left him in turmoil about taking the case to court.

Tony Hawks, defending, said Knight was just 17 when he found out Smith was his real father when he found his birth certificate and he made contact with him in 2016.

Mr Hawks said Knight claims his father had started the trouble that night "but accepts there came a point when he completely lost control".

Mr Hawks said Knight, who has previous convictions, had been due to start an anger management course as part of a community order he was on, which had not yet got underway.

He added: "He has had nearly two years now to reflect on what he did that night."

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