Mother turns in sons to police for blinding man in drunken assault

This is a beautiful story that I came across from the UK...

Taken from Telegraph, UK, 30/05/2008
By Laura Clout

A mother turned in her own sons to police after they boasted of carrying out an unprovoked assault which left a father blind in one eye.

Carol Saldinack said she felt compelled to make the "agonising" decision after learning of the role her sons Luke Newman, 27, and Oliver Clark, 24, played in the violent attack on 36-year-old Marc Parkinson after a night out drinking.

The 51-year-old, who lives in Norfolk, said she has no regrets despite being ostracised from her family and subjected to threats, and she urged others to follow her example.

The pair, along with 25-year-old Benjamin Hammond, were jailed for two years at Chichester Crown Court last week for grievous bodily harm.

The group had been drinking in Chichester, West Sussex, in June last year when they launched the unprovoked attack on Mr Parkinson outside a takeaway restaurant.

The company director, who has two children, was left with a detached retina, extensive cuts and bruising, a perforated eardrum and bruised ribs. He is now blind in one eye, his business has folded and he has been forced to sell his home to pay off debts.

Mrs Saldinack, who has six children, told the Daily Mirror she was trembling with nerves as she picked up the telephone to call police, after hearing that her sons had bragged about the attack.

She said: “Luke was apparently walking around with a newspaper report of the attack as if it was a trophy. I felt angry, appalled, shocked and sickened.

“All I could think was 'this man might die, my sons could be killers’. In minutes I rang police and said: 'About the fight in Chichester, I know who's responsible’.”

The pair’s homes were raided by police the following day and the they two were later identified by witnesses in line-ups.

Despite now living in fear from threats, Mrs Saldinack insisted she has no regrets and said others in her situation should do the same.

“I’d urge anyone who finds themselves in this situation to search their own heart and do the right thing”, she said.

“Mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, friends - someone always knows who’s responsible for things like this. They need to come forward.

“Think of the victim’s family and their hell. If you feel you can cope with the consequences, speak up and tell the truth.”

Mr Parkinson thanked Mrs Saldinack, telling the newspaper it was a “brave thing” to do.

Detective Inspector Jim McKnight of Sussex Police said: “The call we received in this case obviously helped in the investigation. However, there was strong evidence, including forensics, which led to the convictions.

“We would always seek to support and protect individuals who provide us with information in difficult circumstances.”