By David Meikle
A thug who left a stranger lying in a pool of blood after battering him over the head with a shovel has been jailed for 20 months. William Durnion, 34, whacked Gary McGuinness once as he stood on the street in Motherwell, Lanarkshire. The impact of the blow caused Mr McGuinness to fall straight to the ground where he lay motionless while Durnion returned to his house. The yob returned to try and help his victim back to his feet in March this year while council CCTV operators alerted police to the assault. Mr McGuinness was taken to hospital where he received six stitches for a 10cm wound above his left ear but suffered no other injury. Footage showed Mr McGuinness staggering on the street before Durnion appears and strikes out with the shovel over a garden fence. Durnion, of Motherwell , appeared at Hamilton Sheriff Court and admitted assault to severe injury. Sheriff John Speir told him there was no alternative to prison for the ‘vicious and irresponsible’ attack. Depute fiscal Sinead Corrigan told the court: ” Police were contacted by North Lanarkshire Council CCTV operators regarding a male who had been struck to the head with a spade. “The operator further stated that the person suspected of carrying out the assault had walked out of view still in possession of the spade and that the injured man was still lying unresponsive on the ground and was on the ground for 30 seconds before the suspect, now the accused, reappeared no longer in possession of the spade and tries to help the injured male to his feet. ” Officers attended and found the injured party lying on the ground 20 yards from where he had been assaulted and there was a significant amount of blood coming from his head.” The court was told that Mr McGuinness was taken to hospital for treatment while Durnion was later found by police and arrested. Diarmid Bruce, defending , said: “He doesn’t know the complainer who was intoxicated and it wasn’t clear what he was going to do when he was outside. “Words are exchanged and then he has hit him once and he falls to the ground where Mr Durnion then goes back inside but then comes back out to help. “He has let himself down but he was not out looking for trouble that night.” Sheriff Speir said: “The footage appears to demonstrate what can only be described as a vicious and irresponsible attack with a shovel and it is fortunate that the complainer only suffered the injuries that he did.”