Why thug who left Sikh leader for dead after brutal attack legally couldn't have been jailed for more than three years

Last June, a Sikh priest was left for dead in the middle of the road in a sickening assault. Avtar Singh, 62, suffered life-changing brain injuries after the attack on Tib Street.

Police issued CCTV of the incident in a bid to find the attacker, and after a successful public appeal, 28-year-old Claudio Campos was arrested and charged over the assault. Yesterday, Campos was sentenced to three years imprisonment at Manchester Crown Court.

In her sentencing remarks, Judge Hilary Manley acknowledged that 'no sentence I can pass can adequately reflect or compensate for the impact caused to Mr Singh and to his family'.

READ MORE: "You hid like a coward... you're nothing but a thug": Heartbroken family's emotional words to attacker

Judge Manley told him: "You left him, clearly seriously injured, lying in the middle of the street. As far as his family are concerned, and given what you later told the police, you left him for dead. He is still alive, but his life bears no resemblance to what it was.

"He has suffered severe and ongoing cognitive and physical impairments, which are almost inevitably going to be with him for the rest of his life. At present, almost four months on, he remains in hospital."

But Judge Manley - like every other judge in England and Wales - was bound by certain rules and guidelines in sentencing that help explain why Campos' sentence was that of three years.

Firstly, judges are bound by sentencing guidelines that are set by the Sentencing Council. One of the main reasons for these guidelines is consistency when it comes to length of sentence for certain crimes.

Campos was charged by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) with a Section 20 assault (inflicting grievous bodily harm). This is less serious