Teenager in 'tombstoning' prank at Bridlington is spared jail

Kyle Farrell, 15, who had been given an ASBO before the incident, pushed 14-year-old Luke Greenwood off a high sea wall as a "lark" last August.

The schoolboy struck his head on a concrete plinth and spent three weeks in hospital after suffering a fractured skull, neck and rib, a punctured lung, knee and hand injuries and a blood clot to the brain.

The teenagers had been "tombstoning" - a craze where adrenaline seekers plunge into the sea from a great height.

Luke missed a month of school and lost all feeling in part of his hand, although he is said to be making a good recovery.

Farrell was convicted of unlawfully and maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm at trial last month.

Sentencing him to a 12-month supervision order at Beverley Magistrates Court, District Judge Daniel Curtis said: "It's right to say that your life and that of Luke's changed in a blink of an eye that afternoon. He was very seriously injured.

"I fear you won't be the last young person to appear in court over this sort of act, where adrenaline junkies partake in this tombstoning activity which can lead to serious injury or death.

"The case centred around whether this tombstoning constituted a criminal offence. I needed to decide at trial whether you had been reckless and I found that you had been."

The youth's parents sat beside him during the hearing. District Judge Curtis also ordered him to pay 250 compensation to his victim, although this will be paid by his unemployed mother.

The judge added: "I am loath to ask your mother, who is on benefits, to pay a large sum because as a 15-year-old you have no income other than 5 a week pocket money so she will have to pay.

"But there has to be compensation. I hope this is a debt that at some point in your life you can pay back to her."

Last month's trial heard that at around 8pm on August 13 last year, a group of youths had gathered at a high sea wall in Bridlington, some wearing wetsuits preparing to

jump in.

Witnesses said they had seen Farrell push Luke off the wall with both hands. One 13-year-old boy said: "I saw Kyle push Luke. I've seen people get pushed in the water before. He said something like 'go on, get in' and then pushed him. When Luke started to turn around to see who it was, Kyle pushed him again and he fell."

After the incident, Farrell ran down the steps to the sea to help pull Luke from the water before fleeing the scene in panic.

Mitigating, Ed Cunnah said the group of teenagers had been "larking about" throughout the fateful day.

He said: "He did not intend for Luke to be injured, and he was extremely horrified by the consequences of the incident.

"He has an immense amount of remorse. He has had sleepless nights thinking about what happened, this has been very difficult for a 15-year-old to deal with. He will struggle to come to terms with the fact that larking about could have led to the death of his friend."

He added that his family had been forced to move house because of the incident, and he had been bullied at school.

Farrell originally denied he the offence and claimed he could not remember pushing his friend because he had gone into shock.

After the sentencing, Inspector Mike Dring said: "Some people do not understand the dangers of jumping off the sea wall. Not only are they putting themselves at risk, but they are also causing a nuisance to users in the area.

"When people jump off the sea wall, they often congregate in groups. Bridlington is an attractive seaside resort and we will not allow the behaviour of a minority of people spoil it for everyone else"

A statement from Luke's mother, who was not present in court, said: "I would particularly like to say a big thank you to those people who gave help to my son that evening, and a special thank you to all the staff and surgeons at Hull Royal Infirmary.

"I feel justice has been done. Luke and I are trying to put this traumatic time behind us and focus on our future."