£7.5k dentist bill after pub attack

THE victim of a one-punch assault at a Dundee pub required thousands of pounds worth of dental work, a court has heard.

The man’s mother was forced to take out a loan in order to pay for the damage.

Dale McClure admitted the assault in Tam’s Bar, Rosebank Street, on March 8 2020.

The 23-year-old pled guilty to a charge of punching his victim to his severe injury and disfigurement.

McClure appeared for sentence at Perth Sheriff Court yesterday.

The case was adjourned to further investigate a compensation payment to the victim’s family.

Sheriff Euan Duthie said he did not want them to be left “out of pocket” following the attack.

Fiscal depute Rebecca Kynaston said: “The complainer lives with his mother, who told us that the cost of the dental treatment was £7,500. “A personal loan was taken out in order to pay for her son’s treatment.”

She said: “She pays this back in monthly instalments.”

Sheriff Duthie deferred sentence for three months to give McClure the chance to prove he can stay out of trouble.

The sheriff also asked prosecutors to raise the case with the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority.

“What I don’t want is for the victim’s family to be left out of pocket,” he said.

The sheriff told McClure: “To be very clear, I’m not calling for a good behaviour report with a view that an admonishment will be at the end of this.”

McClure, of Kingsway East, will return to court to learn his fate on September 1.

In 2018, Police Scotland launched its now-annual One Punch awareness drive.

The campaign was established after six people died following singlepunch assaults in one 12-month period.

Licensees are encouraged to help spread the message which is further promoted through posters in bars and clubs, as well as posts and videos on social media.

Footballer John Black, from Blairgowrie, helped launch the campaign by telling how his career was destroyed by a single-punch assault.

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Dale McClure.