A man who deliberately burned another man with a flaming aerosol before throwing boiling water over him has been jailed for 28 months at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court.
It was the fourth time William Raitt (39) had appeared for sentencing following a series of report delays and the late lodging of an impact statement from the victim.
Raitt, of Melville Place, Kirkcaldy, first appeared on indictment on June 1, when he admitted that on July 28 last year at a house in Leven Road, Kennoway, he assaulted Christopher Murray, ignited flammable liquid in an aerosol tin and sprayed it on his head and body, causing his hair and skin to catch fire, rubbed his neck and body with a scourer and threw boiling water over his neck and body to his injury.
The men were among a group at the house who had been drinking.
Mr Murray, who was extremely drunk, said he wanted his face painted with camouflage cream, but became annoyed when it was rubbed in his hair, and went to the bathroom to clean up.
Raitt became concerned he would ruin towels, and after getting into the bathroom, sprayed deodorant and lit it.
The flame went up Mr Murray’s back and head. He was in shock and pain, but had a pot scourer rubbed into his back and neck and then had boiling water from a kettle thrown at him.
Mr Murray was taken to the burns unit at St John’s Hospital for treatment.
At Raitt’s appearance on June 26, solicitor Charles Jackson moved the late victim statement should be regarded incompetent and prejudicial as it had not been lodged in time, while the Crown argued it was their understanding it could be lodged at any time before sentence was passed.
Sheriff Peter Braid on Thursday ruled elements of the victim statement were credible and not prejudicial and put it to Mr Jackson that Raitt was in no worse a position now than if the statement had been produced earlier.
Sheriff Braid said there was be no alternative to imprisonment and sentenced Raitt to 28 months, backdated to August 6.
He also imposed a 12-month supervision order on Raitt’s release in order to protect the public from harm.