A POLICEMAN jailed for an attack that left a man with brain damage is to be released after serving less than four months of a 15-month term.

John Beresford, 44, formerly a Detective Constable with Durham Police, will be released early next month.

He was jailed for 15 months on June 11, after he was found guilty of grievous bodily harm.

It followed an attack on tool-fitter Graeme McMillan, 45, who was enjoying a night out on Newcastle's Quayside.

Beresford punched McMillan once, but he suffered near-fatal injuries.

He was knocked unconscious and suffered brain damage, resulting in a major personality change that led to the break-up of his marriage.

A Parole Board decision to give the former Consett CID officer his freedom from Sudbury Open Prison, in Derbyshire, was contested in a plea by Mr McMillan's wife, Carole, 40.

He will be given an electronic tag and released on October 2.

The attack happened while Beresford, a married father-of-two, was on a stag night with other police officers.

Beresford, who resigned from the force, said he acted in self-defence.