A drunk bully choked his girlfriend and punched her in the face when she told him to leave their home after drinking eight or nine pints of lager. The assault left her unable to breathe leaving her feel "upset and frightened".
Michael Rice, 37, of Newport, had been in an on and off relationship with his victim for six years when he attacked her on April 24 last year. He began drinking alcohol in the morning before he and his then partner went to the Out Out bar in Maindee.
A sentencing hearing at Newport Crown Court on Friday, January 13 heard the couple returned to the victim's home at midnight and went to bed. But Rice was heavily intoxicated having drunk lager and spirts, and she asked him to leave her home.
READ MORE: Get the latest court cases sent to your email inbox with our Crime & Punishment newsletter
Prosecutor Gareth James said the defendant "stormed" downstairs, grabbed 10 cans of lager from the fridge while screaming and shouting. While the victim was stood at the bottom of the stairs, Rice moved forwards suddenly and grabbed her by the throat with both hands.
He applied pressure to her neck and strangled her for five to six seconds which caused her to struggle and feel enormous pain. She scrammed the defendant who continued to choke her with his left hand and used his right hand to punch her to the left side of her face.
The victim was unable to recall the number of blows but managed to remove Rice from the house with great difficulty before calling the police. She suffered swelling and cuts to her face, lip and eyes. She told police the incident left her "extremely upset and frightened".
Rice, of Elan Close, Bettws, was arrested and initially denied he had assaulted the victim but he later pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm. The court heard he had previous convictions for motoring offences, and this was his first conviction for violence.
In mitigation, Laurence Jones said his client was "deeply ashamed" of his behaviour in the cold light of day and wished to apologise. He said the defendant was remanded in custody for seven months after being recalled to prison for a breach of licence, but the barrister argued for Rice to be dealt with in the community so he could begin a job at Asda and keep his accommodation.
Sentencing, Recorder Andrew Hammond said: "This was a very nasty incident. It must have been a truly terrifying experience." He said he had "no confidence" the defendant would stick to the terms of a suspended sentence.
Rice was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment. He was also ordered to pay £250 in compensation to his victim.
READ NEXT:
Man murdered neighbour by setting fire to his caravan while he was inside
Rolex-wearing cocaine dealer who made £125,000 ordered to pay back £73,000
Teenage drug dealer tasered by police while trying to escape from raid
- Former soldier found guilty of raping and sexually assaulting woman in her 70s
You can sign up to our regular Crime and Punishment newsletter here while this interactive tool allows you to check the latest crime statistics for your area:
