Wife basher cops jail time

Wife was slapped, kicked and choked

DESPITE her de facto husband being jailed for assaulting her, a wife and mother stood by her man in support as he faced Toowoomba District Court on serious offences.

The 29-year-old man had already been subject to a domestic violence protection order and a three-month suspended jail term for a previous assault on his wife when he engaged in an argument with her at the family home on February 3, the court heard.

Accusing his wife of texting other men, she said she was sick of the accusations and wanted to end their relationship, prosecutor Grace Ollason told the court.

The man, who cannot be named due to domestic violence order issues, then slapped the woman across the face before smashing a bottle of wine on the floor.

He had then picked up a pair of scissors which he pressed into the woman’s shoulder, squeezed and twisted her breasts which left her breast bruised and pressed car keys into her shoulder near her neck.

Ms Ollason said the man had then grabbed the woman by the throat and choked her to the point she couldn’t breath for a time.

He had then kicked her in the leg and threatened to kill her and her parents, she said.

Telling her she would be dead if she called police, the man left the house and the woman contacted her mother and police.

Her husband had walked to the police station and handed himself in, Ms Ollason said.

Adding to the seriousness of the incident was that the couple’s children had been home at the time and had witnessed the assault on their mother, Ms Ollason said.

The man had spent the ensuing 177 days in custody before pleading guilty before the court to charges of assault occasioning bodily harm while armed, choking and two counts of common assault, all domestic violence offences.

His barrister Frank Martin told the court his client’s de facto wife was in court supporting him and had provided a letter of support to the court.

His client drank very little alcohol but he did have a problem with marijuana use and he had smoked the drug that day, he said.

Since being in custody his client had done a number of courses to improve himself and he had organised a 27week men’s behaviour course for when he was released from prison, Mr Martin said.

His client’s wife had been helping him organise counselling and she wanted him home as did their children, Mr Martin submitted.

Judge Nathan Jarro told the man his offending was “very serious”.

“Your offending behaviour was particularly cowardly,” he said.

“You ought to be thoroughly ashamed of your actions.”

However, Judge Jarro said he accepted the offender was remorseful but that he was lucky to have such a supportive wife.

Judge Jarro sentenced the man to 30 months in jail but, declaring the 177 days he had spent in custody as time already served under the sentence, ordered that he be released on parole immediately.

The man will appear before Toowoomba Magistrates Court this week on the breach of domestic violence order.

‘‘ YOUR OFFENDING BEHAVIOUR WAS PARTICULARLY COWARDLY. JUDGE NATHAN JARRO