A drunk man brutally attacked a concerned dad with a hammer after he was confronted over why he’d invited his daughter back to his home.
Edward McParland had asked the woman back to his Aberdeen home as she walked back from work on November 24 last year.
She declined, but after telling her parents about the odd invite they paid McParland a visit.
But the confrontation soon turned violent with McParland confronting them with a hammer and saying: “I’m going to cave your head in”.
Fiscal depute Lucy Simpson told Aberdeen Sheriff Court: “On the afternoon of Wednesday November 24 the couple were advised by their daughter that the accused had approached her on her return from work and invited her to his home address.
“Their daughter had been unnerved by her interaction with him.
“The complainer and his wife attended at the accused’s address that evening to discuss this with him.”
They were greeted by an intoxicated McParland, 48, and his “confrontational” wife and daughter before an argument broke out and the couple left.
“They exited the block of flats and walked on to Findhorn Place,” the fiscal added. “The accused also left the flat. He was in possession of a hammer.
‘I’m going to cave your head in’
“He approached the man and shouted: ‘I am going to cave your head in’ then repeatedly struck him on the head and body.
“The hammer made contact with his head and jaw once each and with his arms and torso repeatedly.”
Shocked passers-by called the police and McParland was arrested and taken into police custody, where he has remained ever since.
Appearing via videolink from HMP Grampian he admitted one charge of assault and another of possession of an offensive weapon.
His victim suffered swelling to his head and scratches to his head and body.
‘He had gone on a drinking binge’
Defence agent Tony Burgess said McParland was drunk at the time and his recollection of the event was “very cloudy”.
“He had pretty much gone on a drinking binge and it’s for that reason his recollection is pretty limited,” he told the court.
“What he does remember is that when he opened the door there was a rather large gentleman and his wife there.”
He added that McParland was a “small and slight individual” and had himself suffered a black eye during the “stramash” with the much larger and stronger man.
“An argument ensued and it all got out of control pretty quickly. He was concerned for his wife and daughter and accepts that he had picked up the hammer that was by the door and gone over to where they were.
‘Things quickly got out of control’
“There was a lot of pushing, shouting, swearing and screaming between the four others and he got involved and things have quickly gotten out of control.”
Sheriff Philip Mann said he could find no alternative to handing out a custodial sentence given McParland’s “bad record” and history of assaults.
He jailed McParland, a prisoner at HMP Grampian in Peterhead, for 20 months.
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