A thug who attacked a schoolboy in broad daylight and left him with a broken jaw has been jailed for 18 months.

Tyevon Bean, 20, pleaded in January to causing grievous bodily harm to 16-year-old Jarrett Carlington. At that time, prosecutor Maria Sofianos explained that Mr. Carlington, a student at the Berkeley Institute, was walking along Wesley Street in Hamilton around 4.50 p.m on November 23 when Bean and an accomplice struck.

The accomplice, who was not before the court, put the schoolboy in a headlock, while Bean said: "What's in your pockets?"

A struggle ensued, during which Bean punched Mr. Carlington twice with a closed fist before tripping him to the ground. At this point, members of the public intervened and halted the attack.

The victim was taken to hospital where he was found to have suffered a broken jaw. He needed surgery, and his jaw was wired shut for several weeks while it healed.

Bean, who was unemployed and living with his mother at the time of the attack, faced a second charge of attempted robbery, which he denied. Ms Sofianos offered no evidence on that charge.

Defence lawyer Graveney Bannister told yesterday's sentencing hearing at Magistrates' Court that Bean is "one course away from completing his GED". He said he's been trying to better himself since being remanded into custody in December.

Mr. Bannister also described Bean as having mental health issues, and problems with drug and alcohol abuse.

Bean, formerly of Hidden Valley, St. George's, told the court: "I would just like to apologise to the victim. I am very sorry."

Jailing him, Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo said: "Mr. Bean, this is an offence of personal violence. It's committed in a cowardly sense, in the sense that it's committed with another person and not an individual by himself. It resulted in a serious personal injury to the individual."

He gave Bean credit for pleading guilty at an early stage, but said a prison sentence must be imposed to deter such crimes.

Bean must complete two years of probation upon his release from prison, including a curfew for the first six months.