Published: Wednesday, 23rd April, 2008 12:00
Head is smashed on slab in brutal assault
By Court Reporter
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Alloa Sheriff Court heard that Kay Lowson was left with broken teeth and stitches to her nose after the attack.
A WOMAN who had her head smashed off a concrete slab in a brutal assault leaving her traumatised has hit out at her attacker’s sentence.
Kay Lowson (46) was left with broken teeth and bruising to her head and body after she was viciously beaten by Konrad Langer in June last year.
He repeatedly punched and kicked her, striking her head off a concrete step after she caught him stealing a jewellery box from her home.
Langer (38), of Clackmannan, was locked up for nine months after appearing for sentencing at Alloa Sheriff Court on Tuesday – with a four-month supervised order on his release.
Ms Lowson believes the sentence is too lenient for an attack that has left her on medication for flashbacks and anxiety attacks.
She told the Advertiser, “Wonderful isn’t it? That person almost took my life. I was expecting at least six years behind bars.
“That’s the Scottish judicial system for you. I want justice to be done. He smashed my face and he smashed my teeth.
“He left me unconscious and I had to be resuscitated. Yet he gets what, nine months? That’s a joke.”
Fiscal depute Stuart Ronnie told the court that Langer had agreed to carry out some minor repairs on Ms Lowson’s home during the summer months last year.
He attended her home in Look Aboot Ye Brae in Clackmannan at midday on 8 June with his partner.
As the two women spoke in the downstairs living room Langer went upstairs to assess the work.
Fifteen minutes later he reappeared, his eyes “rolling around” as if he was under the influence of a substance.
Ms Lowson drove the couple back to their home in Garden Place where the two women were chatting in Langer’s living room.
Mr Ronnie said, “There was some altercation with the dog and as the accused fell backwards, something fell out of his clothing – a blue box.”
Ms Lowson recognised that the blue jewellery box, containing bracelets and rings, was from her bedroom and confronted Langer.
When he turned on his partner Ms Lowson tried calling the police but couldn’t get a signal.
“At that point she went into the close where the accused was with his partner,” Mr Ronnie said. “Ms Lowson grabbed the accused and attempted to pull him away from his partner.
“The accused essentially punched Ms Lowson on the left eye hard and on the chin. He repeatedly punched and kicked her on the body, banging her head on the concrete step. The police attended and saw the accused punch Ms Lowson four to five times on the face. He continued to do so and had to be restrained and handcuffed.”
Langer was also found with watches from Ms Lowson’s home.
He originally denied the attack to the police claiming he blacked out after being “lamped”.
Ms Lowson was left with a 7cm cut to her nose that required two stitches, a chipped tooth and a loose tooth as well as bruising to her face and body.
She said, “I am suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and am on librium tablets that help calm me down.
“I’m not the person I was before the attack. I was a hardy, out-going person who wasn’t afraid of anything. I was a public speaker. I created management reports for the power station for 25 years.”
Defence solicitor George Higgins said his client’s partner claimed Langer, who suffers from depression, had not taken any substances that day and his demeanour only changed when they got to Ms Lowson’s home.
He added, “He has no memory other than an incident occurred and he ended up in police custody.”
Mr Higgins said remorseful Langer may have unwittingly taken a substance without his knowledge but there was no evidence.
Langer pled guilty to stealing jewellery from a house in Look Aboot Ye Brae in Clackmannan on 8 June last year.
He further admitted assaulting Kay Lowson to her injury and permanent disfigurement at his home on the same date.
Sentencing Langer, Sheriff David Mackie told him, “Having regard to the seriousness of the assault, whatever the mitigating circumstances laid out by your solicitor, it is one that merits a custodial sentence.”
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