Beaten man 'like a crash victim'

The court heard evidence from an accident and emergency consultant

A murder trial has heard how the face of a one-eyed man was so badly smashed he looked like a car crash victim.

Accident and emergency consultant, Dr Linda Symington, said she had never seen an assault victim with injuries as bad as those suffered by Dougie Downes.

Mr Downes died six months after being attacked at home in Glamis Close, Kirkcaldy on 5 October, 2005.

Anton Puddepha, 34, and David Rodger, 47, deny murder and the trial, at the High Court in Perth, continues.

Massive trauma

Dr Symington said the injuries - which left part of his face hanging loose - were like those seen in car crashes or in people who had fallen great heights.

The consultant told the High Court in Perth that Downes must have been struck "very hard" many times in the face.

The mid-part of his face was able to be moved within the rest of his skull, which would imply a significant facial fracture Dr Linda Symington

She said: "It must have been a massive amount of trauma to cause injuries of that extent to the face. I have never seen these kind of injuries from an assault.

"The only time I have ever seen (this kind) of trauma to the face is from a road traffic accident or a fall from a great height.

"He would require to have been struck very hard in the face to cause all of these multiple facial fractures. I believe it would have to be many blows from the injuries I saw."

She told the jury that Mr Downes was in an extremely poor condition when he arrived at Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline on 6 October 2005.

Poor prognosis

Dr Symington said she fully expected Mr Downes to die within a matter of days and was surprised to learn he survived a further six months.

She told the court: "Given the injuries, I thought his prognosis was very poor. I felt he was likely to die sometime in the next few days.

"We were trying to get hold of relatives. I have to say I was surprised to hear he survived for any length of time.

"The mid-part of his face was able to be moved within the rest of his skull, which would imply a significant facial fracture."

The court heard that Mr Downes initially gave a reading on the Glasgow Coma Scale of just three - the minimum, and equivalent to death.

Mr Puddepha and Mr Rodger deny repeatedly punching and kicking Mr Downes on the head and body on 5 October 2005, resulting in his death at Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy, on 12 April 2006.