A woman left scarred for life after being glassed with a bottle says the “joke” of a sentence handed to her attacker indicates all that is wrong with Scotland’s justice system.
Francis Monaghan, 28, was ordered to carry out 255 hours of unpaid work and pay £750 to his victim, mother-of-two, Debbie Strachan, 32, following last March’s incident in Dundee’s Liquid nightclub.
The 28-year-old would have faced two years in jail if he was convicted of assault, but prosecutors yesterday accepted his guilty plea to a charge of culpable and reckless conduct.
The prosecution’s decision has left Ms Strachan devastated.
Branding Monaghan a “violent person”, the 32-year-old insisted she has been left traumatised by her ordeal.
She said: “I feel really disappointed that they didn’t make an example of him.
“I think that is the problem with the law, nobody is scared of it and that’s why the country is going down the pan.
“I thought it would have been a lot worse than that £750 to be paid to me is nothing. I think it’s an absolute joke.
“He is a violent person and he has just walked away scot free. If he went to prison he would have learned some sort of lesson.
“Even to this day, I struggle to come to terms with what happened. I have to look in the mirror every day, I have to look at the scars every day.
“It’s not just the physical side of things, it’s the mental side too. It took a lot away from my relationship with my husband.”
Ms Strachan, from Stirling, had visited Dundee with Monaghan and a group of friends for a night out when things suddenly turned violent.
It was revealed in court that Monaghan had attempted to strike a man with a bottle after becoming involved in a fight, but instead struck his friend in the face.
The incident left Ms Strachan with a four centimetre wound which went through to her skull.
Door staff at the club initially thought the 32-year-old had fallen over.
As a result, police allowed Monaghan to walk free.
But the true extent of the incident was laid bare after Ms Strachan shared horrific images of her wounds online and criticised the lack of decisive action taken.
Since the incident, Ms Monaghan has launched a petition to call for glass bottles to be banned in nightlcubs.
A Crown Office spokesman said:“We note the decision of the Sheriff. As with all cases, the Crown will consider the sentence in due course and give consideration to whether it might be unduly lenient”.