The family of a Payson man who was attacked by a teenager with sledgehammer on Friday is raising funds to help pay for his recovery.
Payson police have identified the victim as Benjamin Partridge, 41. He was working in his driveway on Friday morning when a 17-year-old boy approached him from behind and struck him with the sledgehammer. The teenager, who later turned himself in, also hit several children at an adjacent home daycare center and another adult with his fists before fleeing on foot.
Partridge remains hospitalized in the intensive care unit. According to a GoFundMe page, he was in his driveway building a fish tank stand with his back to the street when the suspect picked up a sledgehammer and hit him in the head with it, knocking him out and fracturing his skull. The teenager then hit Partridge two or three more times, breaking four ribs and his pelvis and damaging his lung, liver, spleen and kidneys.
According to the GoFundMe page, Partridge is “stable,” but “his brain has not stopped swelling” and his responses are “minimal.” As of Wednesday morning, the page had exceeded its $10,000 goal.
Follow @ScottDPierce