Leroy Barry John Brown’s punch left the officer with serious eye injuries

The security officer sustained serious eye injuries from the punch and had to undergo surgery.

A Baillie Henderson Hospital patient who punched a security officer in the face leaving him with a significant eye injury has been handed a jail term.

Leroy Barry John Brown, 30, had a history of assaulting nurses, officers or fellow patients at hospitals, Toowoomba District Court was told.

On February 9, last year, security officers had been called by a nurse when a fight broke out between two patients in the Ridley Unit of Baillie Henderson Hospital, Crown prosecutor Elizabeth Kelso told the court.

When the 37-year-old security officer responded to the call, he arrived with another officer to find Brown in the fight, she said.

As he tried to break up the fight, the security officer, who wore eye glasses, was punched by Brown in the left eye.

He fell to the floor clutching his eye and had some medical treatment before being taken to hospital.

The officer was taken to Toowoomba Hospital for treatment and was later seen by an eye specialist who diagnosed serious injuries including a retinal detachment that required surgery, Ms Kelso said.

In the complainant man’s victim impact statement which was put before the court, he told of the significant impact the injury had on him and that he was still undergoing treatment and faced further surgery.

He could no longer participate in the sports he loved, he said.

Brown appeared in custody to plead guilty to a charge of grievous bodily harm.

The 30-year-old had extensive criminal history which included previous offences of violence, some of which were committed at the same hospital and Toowoomba Hospital, as well as an armed robbery for which he was jailed in 2014.

Ms Kelso said Brown had spent 330 days, or about 11 months, in pre-sentence custody since his arrest for this matter.

Judge Craig Chowdhury noted Brown had significant mental health issues and had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and other disorders.

Judge Chowdhury sentenced Brown to two-and-a-half years in jail but, declaring the 330 days he had spent in pre-sentence custody as time served under the sentence, ordered he be released on parole forthwith.