A drunken ex-husband shopped himself to police after attacking his former partner with a wrench.
Mark Crilly, 49, of The Knoll, Palacefields, Runcorn, is now behind bars and banned from approaching Gayle Hobson after confronting her at her house earlier this year. Chester Crown Court heard that Crilly and Ms Hobson had divorced in 2011 but on February 12, this year, he sent messages to their teenage daughter and made “unpleasant comments” about them “sleeping in the house he had built” and said he was “going to come around”.
He was drunk. That evening Crilly turned up at the house and “knocked but didn’t get an answer”.
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When their daughter looked out of the window she saw him “walk away and scratch the car with something in his hand”. She ran downstairs to tell her mother and they went outside and saw the vehicle had been scratched and had a window smashed.
They returned inside to call the police and Crilly followed outside, knocking on doors and windows. Ms Hobson went outside and remonstrated about the vandalism to her car.
Crilly swung “an object” at her and struck her, and his victim immediately suffered “excruciating pain” and “thought she was going to pass out”.
Frances Willmott, prosecuting, said: “She fell backwards and went back towards Mr Crilly. He dropped what he was holding, the wrench. He then ran away.”
Officers from Cheshire Police attended and took pictures of her injuries and she went to hospital with facial bruising, swelling and pain.
While officers were still speaking to Ms Hobson, Crilly called the police “to say he had assaulted his ex-wife”.
During his interview the next day he told them he “had been around and hit her” after he had been “drinking and was upset and went to the address with a wrench to damage her car”. He claimed to have hit her with his hand and that the wrench “fell out of his pocket”.
Crilly pleaded guilty at the first opportunity to criminal damage and possessing an article with intent to cause criminal damage and to assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH) at a later date.
Anthony O’Donohoe, defending, cited Crilly’s “good work record”, “genuine remorse” and his guilty pleas in his mitigation and said Crilly had “strong prospects of rehabilitation”, adding he “is suffering with his mental health”.
Mr O’Donohoe said: “This experience has had a salutary effect on him, as have two days on remand.”
Crilly was also of previous “good character” with no other convictions.
Recorder Paul Taylor questioned the level of genuine remorse, and pointed out Crilly didn’t plead guilty to ABH in March and admitted the charge in July, as the judge asked “why did it take him so long to be sorry for what he’s done?”
Citing the use of the wrench, Recorder Taylor said the assault on Crilly’s ex-wife was too serious for anything other than immediate custody and sentenced him to 15 months in prison to be served immediately.
He approved a restraining order to stop Crilly from contacting Ms Hobson but the judge turned down a similar request for the former couple’s daughter, although Ms Willmott said it was “abundantly clear” she wanted no contact and was “frightened” of him.
During his sentencing comments, Recorder Taylor explained that decision.
He said: “I have no doubt that being prosecuted for these matters has been a salutary lesson and I’m confident that you will not communicate with your daughter in a way she will find unacceptable, and if she doesn’t want to speak to you that’s something you will have to put up with.”
Crilly told the judge he understood and accepted the sentence and “what’s been said in court today”.
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