A man who pushed a businessman down the stairs at an Altrincham nightclub, leaving him quadriplegic and unable to move his arms or legs, has been jailed for 16 years.
Niall Peak, 32, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 16 years after being found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent after a trial at Manchester Crown Court.
Rob Harris, a 52-year-old dad-of-two, had been celebrating a friend's birthday at Totties on The Causeway when the incident happened at 2.10am on June 7th last year.
The court heard that Mr Harris, who was wearing a surgical boot and using a crutch at the time due to an injury, was leaving the club to meet a friend when a "heavily intoxicated" Peak pushed him down a steep staircase with both hands.
Mr Harris broke his neck in the assault - which was caught on CCTV - and has spent the last nine months in hospital after suffering a serious spinal injury.
He has since come close to death on numerous occasions, with Mr Harris telling the court he had suffered 15 cardiac arrests, several bouts of serious infection, pneumonia, blocked airways and two serious choking incidents.
Mr Harris, a company director, bravely attended court in a wheelchair, where he read a statement about how his life has been irreversibly changed.
Struggling to hold the paper himself, a nurse assisted him as he described how he now requires round-the-clock medical support for even the most basic tasks. As tears were shed in the public gallery, he addressed his attacker directly: "Can I just say, what you did was cowardly and unforgivable."
His twin brother, Rhys, described the impact of the attack as "heartbreaking" and "shattering", while his 84-year-old mother, Violet Pope, told the defendant: "I hope you feel well ashamed of yourself for what you have done, Mr Peak."
Passing sentence, Judge Hilary Manley described the attack as a "spiteful and deliberate shove" with "the most terrible repercussion imaginable short of death". She continued: "He is entirely reliant on others for every single aspect of his life. His life is utterly and irrevocably changed."
The defendant, Peak, had pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm, but denied intending to cause Mr Harris serious harm. The jury found him guilty of the more serious charge, and he was handed the maximum sentence possible under the guidelines.
He must serve at least two-thirds of his sentence behind bars, meaning he will spend just over 10 years in prison before being eligible for release.
In his victim impact statement, Mr Harris explained: "I have no memory at all of the assault itself, and very little about the week before and certainly the weeks after. But I now know I suffered life-changing C3-6 spinal cord damage and a C4 fracture."
He has been left unable to move any of his four limbs, describing himself as "quadriplegic."
He continued: "Put simply, everything from my chest upwards still works, so my brain and my head work as they always did, but everything else is tantamount to being dead. My independence has been stolen from me, which is the biggest loss."
Despite his devastating injuries, Mr Harris hopes to move back home within the next six to eight weeks, after significant adaptations have been made to his house, including moving his bedroom into the former lounge. However, he will remain completely dependent on others for his care.
The shocking attack was caught on CCTV, and Peak was identified from the footage before being arrested the next day at his partner’s home in Timperley.
During police interviews, he refused to answer questions, replying "no comment" throughout. Despite this, he later admitted grievous bodily harm but denied intending to cause serious harm, taking the case to trial.
His previous criminal record includes 19 offences, and he last served time in prison in 2012 for burglary.
Defending, Michael Lavery acknowledged the severity of the case, stating: "Nothing I say on behalf of the defendant can mitigate the horror of the injuries suffered by Mr Harris, nor would I ever intend to do so. The harm in this case is extreme."
He added: "I don't think anybody would anticipate the dreadful consequences of his actions." Lavery also noted that Peak had expressed remorse in a letter to the judge and had been engaging in educational courses while in prison, attempting to "address the root causes behind his appalling behaviour."
In sentencing Peak, Judge Manley said: "No sentence I can impose can begin to alleviate the stark reality of the injuries caused to Mr Harris and the enormous difficulties and hardship he now faces with his family."
Under current sentencing laws, Peak must serve at least two-thirds of his sentence behind bars, meaning he will spend just over 10 years in prison before being eligible for release.
Mr Harris, a manufacturing firm director, had been looking forward to retirement, with plans to travel the world playing golf alongside his twin brother, Rhys.
As a keen golfer and long-standing member of Sale Golf Club for 24 years, he had dreamed of visiting some of the greatest courses across the globe. Another shared ambition for the brothers was to attend more Manchester City matches in Europe.
Reflecting on the future he had once envisioned, Rob said: "The thought of not having any pressure of work and with kids grown up, we were looking forward to this period of our lives. We talked about where we would go to play golf abroad, but golf is over for me now. A massive part of my life gone, we have shared tears over that."
Football, another of Rob’s great passions, has also been impacted by his life-changing injuries. A dedicated Manchester City fan, he now faces the reality that attending games will never be the same.
"It's difficult to believe I'll never sit in my seat [at City] again. We were looking forward to doing the European trips in retirement, but these will be totally different and more difficult now I'm in a wheelchair, have a catheter, and can't move or feed myself."
