It will be 13 years in prison, for the man convicted of beating a Schenectady police officer. Geoff Redick was in Schenectady County Court for the sentencing of James Hilton Friday morning.

SCHENECTADY, N.Y. — An amateur mixed martial arts fighter who brutally attacked a Schenectady police officer has been sentenced to 13 years in prison.

James Hilton received the sentence Friday morning before Judge Frank Milano in Schenectady County Court. Hilton had been convicted a trial in October for felony assault on a police officer, after attacking Officer Mark Weekes in August of 2015.

According to prosecutors, Hilton was intoxicated and brandishing a traffic cone near the intersection of Broadway and State Street, when Weekes arrived and ordered Hilton to put down the traffic cone. As Weekes tried to arrest Hilton, prosecutors say the 33-year-old broke free and overpowered the officer, before raining blows on his head.

"He used the skills he learned as a mixed martial arts fighter," said assistant district attorney Christina Tremante, at Friday's sentencing. "He mounted the officer, and put him in a chokehold which cut off oxygen to his bran, rendering the officer unconscious."

Hilton was accused of punching Weekes in the head 28 times. The officer suffered a skull fracture in the attack and was hospitalized for several days.

Hilton ran from the scene, but was later discovered hiding in a garbage dumpster. At sentencing Friday, Hilton said lingering mental illness from his time in the military had spurred the violent attack.

"I went to a scary, dark place in my mind," Hilton told the judge. "I had no preemptive intention of harming him. I was worried about him as soon as our altercation was over."

Hilton apologized and expressed that he wished he could speak to Weekes in person and "hug him." Prosecutors would have none of it.

"What should have been a routine encounter, turned into a life-threatening situation for that police officer," said Tremante. "PTSD can obviously be a very serious illness, but that is not a license to go out, and assault and attack people."

The victim, officer Weekes, gave a statement at sentencing. Outside the courtroom, he explained his belief that Hilton has no remorse for the violent encounter.

"At this point, a year-and-a-half has gone by," Weekes told reporters. "He's had plenty of time to acknowledge what he did, or apologize, or anything. Now it's kind of too late."

Hilton will serve 13 years in prison, followed by five years post-release supervision.

Officer Mark Weekes is back on the police force, albeit with some memory loss, speech issues and loss of function in his right ring finger.