A serial violent offender has been spared jail after he broke a man’s jaw with one punch during a row outside an Aberdeen night club.
Kyle Hill attacked Gary Steele outside Babylon on August 30 last year.
The pair had been out socialising in separate groups of friends when “bad feelings” developed between them.
And during the course of an argument Hill lashed out, punching Mr Steele to the side of the head and knocking him to the ground.
Yesterday the 28-year-old appeared at the city’s sheriff court to be sentenced having previously admitted carrying out the assault.
Fiscal depute Anne Macdonald said: “The incident seems to have started because of some sort of bad feeling. This seems to have been generated by Hill towards Mr Steele within the premises.
“The complainer at one stage was seen speaking with a third party who seems to have been a friend of the Hill.
“Mr Steele may have got into an argument with the third party male and that may have been in the knowledge or sight of Hill.
“Hill did not take kindly to that and got agitated and was noted to be shouting at Mr Steele.”
The court heard that “an incident” than developed inside the club and Mr Steele was asked to leave.
And once outside he was approached by Hill who then carried out the attack.
Miss MacDonald said: “Hill is seen punching Mr Steele on the face in the area of his jaw. That one punch causes him to fall to the ground.
“Thereafter Hill required to be restrained.”
The court heard that Hill, of Grange Place, Arbroath, had been drunk at the time of the offence.
Sentencing Hill – who has a previous conviction for assault – Sheriff Graeme Napier said: “As an older and wiser sheriff than I used to say ‘when drink is in, sense goes out the window’.
“I think you do have a problem with alcohol. Anyone who gets themselves into that sort of trouble clearly does.”
However, he said he acknowledged Hill had not been in any further trouble since the offence and ordered him to carry out 210 hours of unpaid work within the community within the next year.
