THE broken-hearted mother of a man beaten so severely he has permanent brain damage and may never walk again, has condemned the only attacker to be brought to court.

Maureen Marr, 60, whose 28-year-old son Russell, a self-employed electrician, was beaten within an inch of his life on a night out in a Maidstone bar, said: "This thug has devastated the lives of all of Russell's family. It will probably mean 18 months in jail for him but, for us, it's the rest of our lives."

On Friday Christopher Bottini, 31, of St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex, was jailed for three years at Maidstone Crown Court for inflicting grievous bodily harm on Russell Marr, of Beke Road, Rainham, as he drank alone in Maidstone's River Bar on December 11 last year.

Doctors have warned that Russell may never walk again because of "horrific" brain injuries. He will need specialist care and nursing for the remainder of his life.

"The night it happened was really shocking," said Mrs Marr. "They said Russell would not survive whatever they did and asked if they could have his organs. But then he started breathing on his own."

Maidstone Crown Court was told Bottini entered a guilty plea on the basis he punched Mr Marr only once.

Peter Alcock, prosecuting, said two other men either kicked or struck Mr Marr after he fell to the floor. They were not picked out of an identity parade and no charges were brought. It was not possible to determine who caused the worst injuries.

Bottini was in charge of a sales team touting for business for the London Electricity Board. He took exception to Mr Marr speaking to them and hit him on the left side of the face.

Now Mrs Marr will begin the search for a nursing home for her son. Eight months after the attack, Russell is still unable to talk to police about what happened.

"He has a here-and-now memory," said his mother. "What happened that dreadful night we do not know and I don't think we will ever know."