Man jailed after he admits attacking disabled boy in Midlothian

A man who admitted attacking a disabled child in a Midlothian property after drinking two bottles of Buckfast tonic wine has been jailed for 40 months.

Jamie Collins, 36, left the 10-year-old boy bruised and grazed.

Collins earlier admitted assaulting the child on 26 May 2023 to the danger of his life by repeatedly striking him on the head and body and putting a pillow over his face and applying pressure.

Lord Doherty said: "This was a very serious assault on a vulnerable child."

At the High Court in Edinburgh, the judge said the consequences for the victim could easily have been much more significant than they were.

Lord Doherty said: "I accept the events of that evening were out of character. I accept for some time before it you were suffering from a mild to moderate depressive condition."

However, he added that it seemed likely the major cause of Collins becoming violent was due to the excessive consumption of alcohol.

'Ashamed and remorseful'

The judge told Collins he would have faced a five-year jail sentence and a further two-year period of supervision, but for his guilty plea.

Lord Doherty imposed a supervised release order on Collins which will mean he will be under local authority supervision for 12 months once he is freed from custody.

Collins, a prisoner, was left in charge of the child while the boy's mother went out for the evening. Another boy found him with a pillow over his swollen face and contacted the mother.

Police were called and he was taken to hospital. Collins was later traced to the Fort William area.

During an interview with police he said he did not remember what had happened and said he drank two bottles of Buckfast.

Defence counsel Kenneth Cloggie said a background report prepared on Collins noted he was appalled, ashamed and remorseful.

He said: "It is clear there was no planning in this. It has to be recognised that no matter what was going on here he stopped and he stopped of his own volition."