Man hits pregnant wife

Jail term for strangling his partner

A 30-YEAR-OLD Toowoomba man who punched his pregnant wife in the stomach before strangling her until she felt dizzy during a drunken tirade has been handed a threeyear jail sentence.

The then 28-year-old man was drunk and agitated on the night of October 30, 2021, when his partner, who was 16 weeks pregnant with their child, told him she would drive them home.

However, during the trip the man, who is not named due to domestic violence order issues, started yelling at his partner, causing her to have a panic attack and she told him to stop, Toowoomba District Court heard.

He then broke off the mirror, punched the windscreen until it cracked and kicked at the console before grabbing the steering wheel, causing the car to spin out, Crown prosecutor Shontelle Petrie told the court.

When the woman regained control of the car, she drove on only for her partner to grab the gear stick and knock it out of gear forcing her to pull over, she said.

When she drove on he again grabbed the steering wheel but she was able to regain control and avoid hitting other cars on the road, Ms Petrie said.

When she pulled over, the man dragged her by her arms out of the car onto the footpath where he told her to “get the f*** up” before lifting her off the ground.

He then used both hands to squeeze her throat to the point she couldn’t breathe and felt dizzy, she said.

It was then he punched her hard to the stomach before punching her a number of times to the head, Ms Petrie told the court.

The attack only ceased when a woman passing by stopped and intervened, she said.

The complainant woman sustained bruising to her arms and neck.

Ms Petrie described the incident as “a significant and protracted episode of domestic violence” and submitted for a term of three to three and a half years in jail.

The man had been placed on nine months parole just the month before after being convicted of his sixth drink-driving offence coupled with a disqualified driving matter, she said.

He had spent the ensuing 367 days in custody before pleading guilty to dangerous operation of a vehicle, wilful damage, assault occasioning bodily harm, strangulation and common assault – all domestic violence offences.

His barrister Jessica Goldie told the court her client had witnessed domestic violence as a child by his alcoholic father who had also physically abused him. Her client had a longstanding alcohol problem but the time in custody had given him “significant time to sober up” and gain insight into his alcohol problem.

Judge Michael Williamson KC noted, fortunately, the baby was not harmed in the incident and he accepted the man was remorseful.

Judge Williamson sentenced the man to three years in jail but, declaring 337 days of the time spent in pre-sentence custody as time served, suspended the term after those 337 days and placed him on three years probation.