Salisbury Journal:

THE PHOTOGRAPH of Terry Downton’s face after it had been kicked in an unprovoked attack remains just as shocking today as when it was first released by police. And this newspaper publishes it with no little hesitation.

However, our reason is straight-forward. It is the fact that such a crime has been committed in our neighbourhood and the perpetrator is still at large. It also provokes the question: “Why would anyone do this?”

Motives for violence can be many.

The standard terms to differentiate such acts from each other relative to their motivation are “instrumental” and “expressive”. Instrumental is used to describe violence with a purpose; lashing out in the act of robbery perhaps.

Expressive violence has been described as “emotionally satisfying violence without economic gain.”

The experts will tell you whether the act of violence is gratuitous or not is a matter of degree. Some acts of violence might be committed with very little expressive or instrumental motivation and therefore be ‘highly gratuitous’.

It is hard to resist the conclusion that the attack on 35-year-old Terry Downton was just this.

To launch a sustained assault on a stranger as he sat on the grass outside Amesbury Library is a huge act of cowardice and a shocking reminder of just how cheaply the lives and wellbeing of others are viewed by a few of those who walk among us.

Conversely, the bravery of Mr Downton in allowing his face to be shown in the hope of finding those who committed this crime is unquestionable.