November 9, 2015

A 32-year-old Cherbourg man who smashed his way into his estranged partner’s house, kicked down a bedroom door she was hiding behind and then began a prolonged assault on her, has been sentenced to three years’ jail.

The woman was 20 weeks pregnant at the time of the incident and it was only through “good luck” that she didn’t suffer more serious injuries or a miscarriage, the District Court sitting in Kingaroy was told on Monday.

The couple’s four young children witnessed the incident.

The man pleaded guilty to burglary, assault occasioning bodily harm, assaulting police, contravening a domestic violence order and obstructing a police officer.

Crown Prosecutor Matthew Hynes said the man had an “appalling” record of violence.

Since 2006, he had been convicted of 10 charges of assault occasioning bodily harm, nine breaches of a domestic violence order, two charges of common assault, three of obstructing police and one count of robbery.

Mr Hynes said five of the sentences had involved actual time served in prison and all the domestic violence incidents involved the same woman named in the current charges.

The woman was 36 weeks pregnant during one of the previous assaults.

Mr Hynes said the man’s latest charge was a count of public nuisance for which he was sentenced to 110 hours community service, just four days before the latest incident.

He tendered a schedule of facts to Judge Julie Ryrie to consider.

The man turned up at the house, where he had formerly lived, at 3:00am on July 25 and asked to come inside. When the woman said no, he smashed his way inside.

She fled to a bedroom and attempted to barricade herself inside and ring police.

However, the man kicked down the door and knocked the woman to the floor, where he began kicking her.

The prosecutor said it was a protracted beating, “relentless and callous”, which lasted for 10-15 minutes, and was carried out in front of the couple’s children.

She suffered bruising, soreness and damage to her ear canal.

“She was very lucky that she kept the child … it was more luck than design,” Mr Hynes said.

During the arrest, police tasered the man twice with little effect, and at one point he threw a pair scissors at a police officer.

When he was later breath-tested he recorded 0.34.

Defence Barrister Frank Walsh said his client had a problem with alcohol and had no memory of the night.

Mr Walsh said the man had been in hospital with pancreatitis and when he got out, went on a four-day drinking binge with friends.

“He only remembers waking up in the watch-house. He has no recollection of these offences,” he said.

Judge Ryrie said the alcohol reading was extraordinary but that was no excuse for the offences.

She also noted the man’s partner was in court to support him at the sentencing.

Judge Ryrie set a parole release date of July 9, 2016, and extended the domestic violence order against the man to November 5, 2017.