Courts

Man who assaulted and threatened to kill former partner jailed for 16 months

Defence barrister acknowledged to court probation report was ‘not as positive as I would have wished’

On one occasion the man had told the woman he would “smash her head in”.

Claire Henry
Thu Jul 4 2024 - 14:51

A man who made threats to kill his former partner and assaulted her in her home has been jailed for 16 months.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that the now 29-year-old, who cannot be identified in order to protect the identity of the injured party, pleaded guilty to assault causing harm, threats to kill and criminal damage at an address in Dublin on February 12th and 16th, 2021.

“These are deeply serious matters of violence towards an intimate partner in her own home and on one occasion, the offending lasted three hours,” said Judge Orla Crowe as she passed sentence on Thursday.

Judge Crowe said the couple had previously had domestic issues. She said the aggravating factors in this case were that first the incident was a prolonged one with an intimate partner and that four days later, the man again threatened the woman in her own home and caused criminal damage while there was a child present.

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The judge said the mitigating factors were his early guilty plea, his lack of previous convictions; his admissions, work history and willingness to work with the probation services.

Judge Crowe said that the custodial threshold had been crossed and sentenced the defendant to one year and ten months in prison. In order to encourage rehabilitation, she suspended the final six months for two years and placed him under the supervision of the Probation Service for one year post-release.

At a previous hearing, the court heard that the defendant and the injured party had been in a volatile relationship for three years. At about 11pm on February 12th, 2021, the defendant hit the woman on the head and body and called her a “bitch” and a “whore”. The man threatened to kill her and said he would “smash her head in”. The man left her home at 1am.

The court heard that four days later, on February 16th, the man returned to the home and pushed his way in. Once again, he called her a “whore” and made threats to kill her. The defendant grabbed an iPhone from the woman and smashed it. The woman’s child was also present in the house at this time.

A victim impact statement was previously handed into the court, outlining her “sheer fear”, Judge Crowe noted. The woman changed her phone number and described being afraid when she saw a car like the defendant’s.

The man was arrested on April 1, 2021. During his interview, he admitted that he had said things to the woman and been in her home. He accepted that he had assaulted her but not as the injured party had outlined. The man has now cut ties with the woman and moved to a different county.

A probation report was made available to the court, which outlined that the defendant “has distorted views on intimate partner violence” and stated that there is a moderate risk of him reoffending.

The defendant, who came to Ireland in 2014, has no previous convictions.

Kitty Perle, BL, defending, told the court that on the last occasion, the court gave her client “a last chance”, and there was a probation report before the court on Thursday.

“It is not as positive as I would have wished for, but in the last paragraph, it does say that he would be suitable for a domestic violence programme,” she said.

Counsel said her client has moved away from the injured party and is now very much aware of the importance of engaging with the Probation Service.

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