A FORMER doorman knocked a man unconscious then stamped on his head, leaving him permanently scarred, before “high-fiving” a friend as he left the scene.
William Paul Goodman, 22, confronted Stephen Tighe and another man in Micklegate in York at 4am, before felling Mr Tighe with a blow that left him unconscious, witnesses told York Crown Court.
One witness described how Goodman brought his knee up to his chest before stamping down on Mr Tighe’s head as he lay on the ground.
Judge Stephen Ashurst, the Recorder of York, said as off-duty firefighters went to Mr Tighe’s aid, Goodman headed down Micklegate towards Reflex “high-fiving” with a friend and “clearly pleased” with his actions. He was arrested at a takeaway.
The judge said: “You danced around the street. You were fired up for some reason that night. It shows a lack of concern for a man who was unconscious on the ground.”
The judge accepted Goodman had not gone out looking for trouble.
Goodman, 22, of Fishergate, was jailed for four years. Goodman admitted causing grievous bodily harm, but denied doing so with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. A jury convicted him of the intent charge last month. Goodman has worked as a doorman at several night spots in the city centre.
Nick Worsley, prosecuting, said the incident in June last year left Mr Tighe with a permanent facial scar. He had also lost two teeth and needed dental treatment costing more than £3,000.
For Goodman, Glenn Parsons said he was a hard-working, level-headed man who had had a bright future in front of him and who had never been in trouble before. He bitterly regretted his actions that night.
Goodman had experienced “some provocation”. He accepted he was responsible for what he had done and did not blame it on alcohol, but found it “very difficult to come to terms” with the jury’s verdict that he had deliberately stamped on Mr Tighe’s head.
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