The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Martial arts expert fined for attacking former girlfriend
Amartial arts expert who kicked his former partner in the chest before injuring her dog’s leg has avoided a prison sentence.
Michael Winston, who has a black belt in karate, sent his former girlfriend Kirsty Arnott flying backwards on to a bed – “like what you would see on a karate movie” – when he kicked her during an argument at her home in Dunfermline.
He then kicked the phone out of her hand when she tried to call police.
Winston then went on a rampage, smashing ornaments and throwing guitars.
The 48-year-old also kicked Miss Arnott’s dog, leaving it with a dislocated leg.
Winston, of Lomond Crescent, Dunfermline, was found guilty after trial at the town’s sheriff court last month.
Returning to the dock for sentencing, Winston was told by Sheriff Francis Gill it was clear he had used “significant force” when he attacked his former partner.
The sheriff also said the assault had left a “lasting impact on her”.
Winston, a bus driver, was fined £540 and ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work.
He was also told to stay away from Miss Arnott for three years as part of nonharassment order.
The trial heard the pair became embroiled in an argument in the bedroom of Miss Arnott’s home in Nith Street on December 13 last year.
Miss Arnott, 45, told the court she pushed Winston after he “came right up into” her face and invaded her personal space.
She said: “He did a karate kick to my chest. He’s a karate expert. It’s like what you would see on a karate movie.
“He lifted his leg up and kicked me in the chest. I went flying back on my bed.”
She managed to dial 999, but the phone was kicked out of her hand as she spoke to police.
The trial heard the argument continued downstairs, where Winston smashed a fish bowl and another ornament, leaving glass strewn across the floor.
Miss Arnott said he also pulled his own guitars off the walls and threw them in the living room.
She wept as she told how Winston kicked her cavalier King Charles spaniel in the hallway, causing it to “whimper.”
She said: “A few weeks later I took the dog to the vet.
“It dislocated the dog’s knee. The dog has injuries that require treatment.”
Winston had denied the assault.
He told the trial: “I have the skills to punch her, but no, I’ve never raised my hands.
“Through martial arts training – and I’m also exmilitary – I know how to punch effectively and how to develop power.”
He added: “In a situation where I’m forced to hit someone I’m going to hit them and they will stay hit, which is why I will avoid it at all costs.”
Winston was convicted of assaulting his thenpartner by kicking her on the body, repeatedly punching her on the body, seizing a mobile phone from her, throwing it and also punching her on the head to her injury.
He was also convicted of throwing guitars, knocking ornaments from a shelf and throwing a vase causing it to smash and of kicking a dog.