Paul Reed death: Man jailed for attacking Rotherham Hospital patient who then died of a bleed to the brain

Paul Franks, 48, of Blackstock Road, was jailed at Sheffield Crown Court for eight years having pleaded guilty to manslaughter prior to trial.

Franks assaulted patient Paul Reed, 48, on a ward of the hospital, with officers being called by a member of the hospital’s staff at about 8.54pm on February 12. Mr Reed sadly died of his injuries in the early hours of the next day.

A postmortem carried out concluded Mr Reed died of a subdural haemorrhage, which is a type of bleed on the brain.

Detective Inspector Andy Knowles of South Yorkshire Police said: “This was an awful and entirely unnecessary incident that resulted in a man tragically losing his life.

“My sympathies are with Mr Reed’s family. I hope that they can now start to move forward and process what happened, knowing the man who’s actions led to their loved one’s death is behind bars.”

Both men were being treated at the hospital when they became involved in an 'altercation'.

Franks was handed six years in prison for manslaughter, with a further two years to run consecutively after a community order was revoked and he was re-sentenced for unrelated sex offences.