DRINK-DRIVING docker Craig Potter is in jail today while his victim Andrew Scarlett is in a wheelchair coping with life-changing injuries.Because of the sheer folly of Potter's decision to drink after finishing a night shift at Felixstowe docks he has wrecked not only his own and Mr Scarlett's lives, but those of their families.

DRINK-DRIVING docker Craig Potter is in jail today while his victim Andrew Scarlett is in a wheelchair coping with life-changing injuries.

Because of the sheer folly of Potter's decision to drink after finishing a night shift at Felixstowe docks he has wrecked not only his own and Mr Scarlett's lives, but those of their families.

A previously law-abiding Ipswich father-of-two Potter, must now serve a 12-month sentence and live with the knowledge that when his Hyundai rammed Mr Scarlett into a wall near Ipswich docks he virtually destroyed all they both held dear.

As Potter's wife, Teresa, told of a loving family man mortified by what he has done, Mr Scarlett's mother said she felt the sentence for dangerous and drink-driving was a travesty.

Monica Scarlett, 77, said: "I was hoping he'd get more than one year and I don't think he'll serve that, so he probably will walk out of prison very soon and we don't know if Andrew will ever walk again.

"If it had been a mistake, if he'd made a misjudgement I could have understood that, but he downed two cans of booze and ran somebody over.

"The whole family are livid; I haven't heard anybody say it was the right sentence.

"In the court we heard all about what a great guy he (Potter) was but they spent no time on what had happened to Andrew.

"I have no bad feeling towards him (Potter), I have no feelings at all for him. He's not my concern; my only concern is my son."

Mrs Scarlett, of Humber Doucy Lane, Ipswich, said she was now praying her son, who lives in Hartley Street, would recover fully from his injures.

She said he is currently receiving 24-hour care after the crash which left him with three factures to the head, a bleed on the brain, scars across his face, a damaged eye and nose, with deafness in one ear, both legs fractures and needing several serious operations.

Mrs Scarlett added: "When I saw him in the hospital I didn't recognise him, my own son. I walked past him because he was so swollen and unrecognisable.

"Now he can't go to the toilet, can't walk, can't wash himself. All he does is lie on a bed or the sofa morning and night.

"Mentally he's had a hard time and we thought we were going to lose him at one time because he wasn't with us.

"Nobody deserves this to happen to them and Andrew was so kind.

"He was so cheeky. He wasn't a saint but if you fell down he'd pick you up and look after you until you were better.

"Now he's still Andrew but he has times where he doesn't want to talk. He just wants to be left alone.

"It's up to him to either have a life or not have a life.”