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A Woodchurch man who left his sister's boyfriend for dead in his garden bar before going to bed has been jailed for 12 years.
Richard Phoenix, 39, of Robin Way, inflicted a brain injury on Lewis Edwards after kicking and stamping on his head during an early morning drinking session on January 4 last year.
As reported by the Liverpool Echo, Phoenix did not call for help; he reportedly ate a pack of pork scratchings and went to bed. He left Mr Edwards outside in sub-zero temperatures for more than five hours.
Liverpool Crown Court heard the two men had been out for a meal at a restaurant on the evening of January 3 with Phoenix's sisters, one of whom was Mr Edwards' partner. An argument broke out between the couple, and afterwards Phoenix and Mr Edwards returned to the defendant's home on Robin Way.
CCTV showed the pair drinking together in a garden pub and appearing to get on well at 1:57 am. No more CCTV was captured until 3 am, when Mr Edwards was seen lying motionless on the floor. Phoenix only called 999 shortly before 8:30 am, around 20 minutes after discovering his injured victim when he woke.
Paramedics found Mr Edwards unresponsive with a swollen and bloodied face, two black eyes, and a large cut to the back of his head. He was treated for hypothermia at Aintree Hospital, intubated and placed in an induced coma after suffering a bleed on the brain.
Mr Edwards remained in a coma and on a ventilator when transferred to Arrowe Park Hospital on January 18. He was eventually discharged in April after four months in hospital. Doctors found his brain injury had been caused by high-energy blunt force trauma inflicted with significant force.
Edwards is a father of two daughters, aged one and four, and he told police in June he would be left with lifelong brain damage as a result of the attack, which he does not remember.
His brain injury was caused by significant "blunt force trauma".
Jodie Wardle, the mother of Mr Edwards' children, told the court in a statement: "I feel like his carer more than his partner. He requires 24/7 care. Lewis goes to bed at 8 pm every night exhausted. He is physically weak and has been told that he can't pick up or hold his children, as his arms randomly lose strength and he could drop them."
She added: "To Richard Phoenix, I wish to say this. You have completely destroyed Lewis' life. It is heartbreaking to see our children unable to enjoy a full life with their dad."
Mr Edwards' mother, Lesley Collins, said: "When I look at Lewis, it makes me cry. He will never get answers why this man did this to him. It breaks my heart to see my grandchildren look differently at their father. They don't understand why he's changed and can't play with them in the park."
Phoenix, who has no previous convictions, was unanimously found guilty of wounding with intent following a trial. His barrister Clare Ashcroft told the court the attack was an aberration and that Phoenix had stopped drinking alcohol in large quantities since the incident.
Sentencing, Judge Louise Brandon said: "For some considerable time, you were getting on well. You closed the garden pub up, and you took yourself off to bed. Mr Edwards had been on the floor for at least five hours by then. The scene met by police and paramedics was horrific. There was blood extensively on the walls and floor."
She added: "There can be no doubt that whatever happened that night was completely out of character for you. This is a tragic case. There are lives on both sides that have been ruined by your actions. Mr Edwards' life will never be the same, and you have ruined your own life."
