A MAN who drank around eight pints before throwing a baby into the air and dropping it on its head causing catastrophic injuries has been jailed.

Ryan Marsh admitted causing the injuries to the boy when he was looking after the baby.

Teesside Crown Court heard how the youngster suffered a bleed on the brain which has left him suffering from epilepsy and needing to be fed through a tube.

The 24-year-old initially denied causing the injuries but following his and his father's arrest he eventually owned up to his behaviour.

Vicki Lamballe, prosecuting, said Marsh admitted drinking around eight pints and a couple of Jaeger-bombs before returning him to look after the boy.

She said he was throwing the baby up in the air and catching him in March last year when the baby fell through his hands and landed on his head on the ground.

Miss Lamballe said Marsh tried to revive the baby after he 'went limp' and called an ambulance.

The baby was taken to James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough before being transferred to the Great North Childrens Hospital where he remained in a critical condition for almost a week.

The boy's mother told the court of the devastating impact the injuries had caused for her son and her fears for the future.

In a hearbreaking victim personal statement she said: "I have been told his condition will affect him into adulthood and I often hear the worst case scenario for him but I do feel positive for him and do hope that he will be capable of doing things for himself.

"I genuinely don't know what the future holds for him. Naturally I have been affected by this, my life is not what I expected it to be. I know he will be more reliant on me than ever."

Marsh, of Brockrigg Court, Guisborough, pleaded guilty to assaulting the young child.

Michele Turner, in mitigation, said her client had looked after the boy without incident until the accident and is full of remorse for what he did.

Judge Howard Crowson sentenced Marsh to two years and four months in prison.

Praising the dignity of the boy's mother throughout proceedings, he said: "He is very lucky to have a mother like you."