A MAN who battered his lover so badly that she suffered injuries akin to the effects of a stroke has been jailed for life.

Lee Murray, of Bolton Road, Blackburn, was told by a judge that he was a very dangerous man, from whom the public had to be protected.

The 29-year-old had admitted an offence of grievous bodily harm upon his then girlfriend, Sandra Donachie, who whom he had been living in St Helier's Road, Blackpool.

Murray rang the emergency services in the early hours to say "I have just killed someone. I have strangled them. I am covered in blood." He also said he was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia.

Mark Lamberty, prosecuting, said the defendant had spoken of something having told him to kill the woman.

A standing ashtray had been used to attack Sandra Donachie. She suffered fractures to her face and a blood clot on the brain. She could not walk unaided, could not feed herself properly and spoke slowly. She felt as if she no longer had a life, the court heard.

Murray had a long list of previous convictions, including a seven-year sentence for three robberies. He also appeared in court yesterday for sentence on a burglary charge.

Kevin Talbot, defending, said Murray had a serious personality disorder at the time. It was now felt he was not suffering from a mental illness but he had a deeply unsettled and unhappy background.

He and the woman had met nine weeks earlier and she allegedly drank to excess and took drugs. They frequently rowed.

Mr Talbot claimed that she had felt Murray should no longer take his prescribed medication, that it made him look like a junkie. "He therefore missed regular doses of medication," added Mr Talbot. "She was aggressive towards him and he returned that."

He had become inflamed by something she had spoken about and lost control. "There is a very genuine and deep remorse," added Mr Talbot. "He has now off his medication and is able to think and see clearly."

Murray, who has been at Ashworth top security hospital since May, was told by Judge Peter Openshaw: "If released into the community you would present a risk to others, particularly any female sexual partner.

"In my judgement you are, and for the foreseeable future will remain, a very dangerous man from whom the public has to be protected."

He passed a life term, with a determination that Murray must serve four years and nine months before he can be considered for parole.