BOLTON Wanderers star Kyle Dempsey and his dad are facing the prospect of jail time over their joint attack on a bouncer.
Both the footballer, 27, and his dad, 50-year-old Michael, are due to be sentenced later today for what the judge described as a “ugly and brute” attack on Maryport Labour Club doorman Darryl Jarvis.
Father and son had earlier admitted actual bodily harm assault on Mr Jarvis during the violent incident at the club in Cumbria on July 16 last year.
The older Dempsy has also admitted causing criminal damage to a door.
Both men had opted for a “trial of issue” before a judge, claiming they had reacted to violence or a threat of it towards them, with “excessive” self-defence regarding Kyle Dempsey and an attempt to defend his son in his father’s case.
Giving his ruling today at Carlisle Crown Court, Judge Ian Unsworth KC said he had reviewed the CCTV images which had captured most of the incident.
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Kyle Dempsey, from Blackpool, had been playing for Wanderers in a friendly game against Carlisle United earlier in the day before going to socialise with his family at the Tap Tavern in Maryport, the court heard.
Dempsey senior, from Maryport, drank six or seven pints while his son had three or four.
It was as they were walking to the Labour Club to collect Kyle Dempsey’s granddad that the footballer was attacked by a local man.
Kyle Dempsey was briefly knocked unconscious, the court heard.
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A short while later, Mr Jarvis was working at the front entrance to the club when he witnessed a “swarm of people” running towards the club.
The man who is said to have attacked Kyle Dempsey was able to get into the club while there was a struggle taking place at the doors.
CCTV footage of the incident revealed Kyle Dempsey to be “acting aggressively” outside the club, the judge said.
Michael Dempsey is said to have thrown a punch, according to the doorman, and the blow connected with his face.
The bouncer told the court he recalled feeling "multiple strikes to my body and face and head” as he was “bent double” and being kept down.
The incident was temporarily stopped after staff at the club closed the door but it flared up again after the doors were flung open, having been kicked by Michael Dempsey.
The court heard how Michael Dempsey was “clearly angry” and determined to get to the man who had earlier punched his son.
Judge Unsworth said in the violence that followed, he was not satisfied that either defendant was acting in self-defence.
Speaking about Michael Dempsey, Judge Unsworth said: “I am satisfied so that I am sure that Michael Dempsey was not acting in self-defence; he was joining in an ugly, brute attack."
CCTV footage showed Kyle Dempsey kicking the victim twice.
The judge said: "Kyle Dempsey was not defending himself; he was out of control and, in his words, had lost it.”
The violence was only stopped when the police arrived.
By then, Mr Jarvis was covered in blood and appeared to be dazed, the court heard.
He had suffered a broken nose, a chipped tooth, a cut to the head and bruised ribs.
Judge Unsworth said: “In my judgement, this was a determined, sustained and joint attack on a doorman who was doing no more than trying to preserve public order and the safety of those in the club.”
Mr Jarvis said in a victim personal statement to the court that he had lost a night’s pay from his work as a door supervisor and had to take a week off work from his day job as a care home maintenance manager.
He also said a statement which had been issued by Kyle Dempsey’s club had “altered the truth” of what happened and threw suspicion onto him.
Mr Jarvis said he had suffered weeks of headaches as a result of the “multiple assaults”.
He added: “The case should have been completed quickly at the magistrates court if they had had the decency to admit what they had done.”
He described the father and son as “mindless thugs”.
Mr Jarvis added: “I am grateful to the police officers who pulled them off me; if they had carried on my injuries could have been significantly worse and I might not even be here today.”
Acting for both defendants, Lisa Judge described Michael Dempsey as a “loving, kind, family man,” saying he had wept when he was told that his conviction might prevent him in the future from being a youth rugby coach.
She said that when Michael had seen the CCTV footage, there had been “unequivocal horror” in his expression.
The barrister said he had expressed not only remorse, but “insightful remorse”.
Miss Judge said that Kyle Dempsey had also expressed genuine remorse and he had also reacted with horror when he was shown the video footage.
She told the court: “He is an individual who engages in charitable acts and works with youths at grass roots level… He is worried that parents will think he is a poor role model.
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“His concern is about parents and others. At his level and age, within a professional football career, any period of imprisonment will wreck that life for him.”
Judge Unsworth warned both men the face possible jail sentence and will pass sentence later today.
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