Two brothers who launched a violent attack on a young Carlisle man on a city centre street have been spared immediate prison sentences because the prisons are full.
CCTV captured the violence meted out by siblings Kenneth Brown, 27, and 24-year-old Shaun Brown on Lowther Street in the early hours of October 30 2022.
Carlisle Crown Court heard the brothers had travelled with their father, a former soldier, to attend an annual reunion for Kings Own Royal Border Regiment (KORBR) veterans.
The Brown brothers, of Winmoss Drive, Kirkby, Liverpool, came to the attention of bar staff at the Apple Tree for being argumentative and aggressive, said prosecutor Gerard Rogerson. One employee told them as she finished her shift: “No fighting.”
But at around 2am, they encountered a complete stranger in the street while chanting their allegiance to Liverpool Football Club. He spoke of being a Manchester United fan and was then savagely attacked with punches, kicks and stamps over the course of several minutes.
Kenneth Brown first threw the man into a shop front before attacked him as his brother pinned the victim down. Shaun Brown ended the violence with a powerful kick to the head which left the victim motionless before the siblings fled.
The bloodied victim’s injuries included a fracture to his hand, a broken nose, grotesque bruising and black eyes. He was treated in hospital that night and discharged. In an impact statement, he spoke of his career as a plasterer probably being over after cancelling an apprenticeship due to the hand injury.
The Brown brothers were identified after police issued a public appeal for information — and CCTV stills — prompting a former KORBR member to come forward.
They both admitted a charge of attempted grievous bodily harm with intent.
“It was a cowardly, brutal, sustained attack on a drunk and, ultimately, utterly defenceless young man,” said sentencing judge, Recorder Julian Shaw. “How it is that he did not sustain life-changing injuries or, frankly, was killed by you two is nothing short of a miracle.
After hearing mitigation, the judge concluded the violence was an aberration and out of character for two defendants with no previous convictions. Both were working, in stable relationships with Shaun Brown a father-to-be. Neither had been in trouble since the incident.
Recorder Shaw decided in view of their genuine remorse and, he said, the country’s prisons being full, to suspend two-year prison sentences for two years in each brother’s case.
They must both complete onerous rehabilitation requirements, 300 hours’ unpaid work, 12-month night time curfews and 60-day alcohol abstinence monitoring requirements. Each must also pay their victim £1,200 compensation.
