A YOUNG woman has been left permanently scarred after a man sprayed bleach over her and a friend.

Richard Stott, who continued with the attack despite desperate calls to stop, was jailed for a total of three years eight months.

Stott, 23, claimed he had acted recklessly and had not intended to cause injury but the judge said there was only a fine line between the two and he had ‘a dreadful record’ of previous offending.

Liverpool Crown Court heard that the incident happened in a park off Portia Avenue, Bebington, at about 4pm on April 18.

Leanne Rowlands, 19, and her friend, Amy Leyland, a special constable, were there as were Stott and his girlfriend, Samantha Eaton, who both knew them.

They were having a row and Stott looked over at the young women and abusively asked what they were looking at, said Simon Duncan, prosecuting.

Words were exchanged between Miss Leyland and Miss Eaton and he encouraged his girlfriend to slap her, saying he would if she did not do so.

They then walked away but Stott said to them, “Watch, just watch, we will be back in five minutes”, which was taken as an obvious threat.

The couple returned five minutes later and he aggressively approached the women and picked up a bottle of Lambrini. which they had been drinking.

“He held it over his head like a weapon. He did not use it but smashed it on the floor next to them. He then took out a bottle of bleach which he had brought to the scene with him,” said Mr Duncan.

“He began to spray both complainants at a time when there were lots of children around, including a baby in a pram somewhere behind Leanne.”

He squirted it from about a metre away into Leanne’s face and it made contact with her friend’s bare arms and soaked through her leggings.

The couple left, though not before he threatened to ‘batter’ Leanne’s father. Both women went to hospital and Amy was found to have chemical irritation to her arms and legs. The scorch marks took a week to heal but she was not scarred.

Leanne had very painful burns to her face, chest, arms and legs and was immediately referred to Whiston Hospital burns unit where she was detained until nearly midnight.

She had full thickness burns to her right breast measuring 10 centimetres by five centimetres, which has left her permanently scarred.Š

She is self-conscious it and feels unable to wear tops which reveal the scar, said Mr Duncan.

Two days after the attack Stott rang her asking her to drop the charges.

The following day he rang again and this time two police officers also heard the conversation in which he admitted throwing it but said he had not meant to burn her.

The court heard that he also contacted her via Facebook, making abusive remarks.Š

Mr Duncan said that the incident has left Leanne feeling ‘humiliated, scared and upset’.

Her friend Amy had been left scared for going out alone and she has changed the area where she works as a special constable from the Wirral to Liverpool.

Stott, of Seymour Drive, Ellesmere Port, pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm, assault, having an offensive weapon and witness intimidation.

Judge Swift said he was satisfied Stott poses a high risk of harm to others but he was unable to impose an indeterminate sentence to protect the public because the criteria was not met.

The court heard that his previous convictions include an unprovoked assault on a man with a bottle and a brick, and racially aggravated threatening behaviour offences.