A drug dealer who stabbed a man during an attempted murder weeks after he was released early has been returned to jail.
Leonard Taylor, 37, struck Michael Gardiner, 36, on the neck with a knife during a confrontation outside a house in Halbeath on April 1.
The High Court in Edinburgh heard how Taylor had been released on licence on January 25 from a high court drugs conviction
Despite his previous offending, Taylor attacked Mr Gardiner outside his father’s home at Fod Street.
Prosecutors and police have been unable to discover the reasons for the attack but the court heard medical staff rushed to save Mr Gardiner’s life.
Yesterday Lord Malcolm ordered Taylor to serve the remaining 542 days from his previous sentence and told him that once he had served the 542 days, he would have to serve seven years and 10 months for the attempted murder.
Lord Malcolm said: “If it had not been for the prompt and professional medical care given to Mr Gardiner, then it is clear to me that you would be standing here on a more serious charge. It is plain to see that you are a dangerous man and that special measures will have to be put in place for the safety of the public upon your release.”
The story emerged after Taylor, of Lochgelly, pled guilty to attempted murder last month. Sentence had been deferred for the court to obtain reports.
On the previous occasion, the court heard how Taylor and a friend went to Mr Gardiner’s father’s house at around 7.20pm on April 1.
Taylor stabbed Mr Gardiner on the neck with a knife and his victim then started to lose a “substantial amount of blood”.
Paramedics attending the scene found that Mr Gardiner’s mouth was full of blood and that he had a Glasgow Coma Scale reading of three – which indicates the person is in a “deep coma”.
Mr Gardiner stopped breathing at one point as medics fought to save his life at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary.
They succeeded and he was later discharged from hospital.
Defence solicitor advocate Iain Paterson told the court his client had a long-term drug problem but he accepted responsibility for his actions.
He added: “I would ask your lordship to impose as lenient sentence as he can in the circumstances of the offences.”
