A man banned by a court order from contacting his ex-partner was found by police hiding under her mattress. Just weeks before being caught in bed Jordan Berry had been sentenced for a previous breach of the same restraining order. Sending the 32-year-old to prison a judge said there was no realistic prospect of rehabilitating him given his attitude towards orders of the court.
Helen Randall, prosecuting, told Swansea Crown Court that in the early hours of March 5 this year police responded to reports of a disturbance at a Swansea petrol station where Berry was shouting and swearing at his ex-partner Nia Richards and ordering her to get into a car. By the time officers arrived at the garage in Penllergaer the car had gone but a note had been made of its registration number and that led police to Miss Richards' address.
The court heard a bleeding Miss Richards answered the door and denied Berry was at the property and she said the blood around her mouth was due to chapped lips. Police entered and searched the house and found the defendant hiding under a mattress in the bedroom. As Berry was being escorted to a waiting police car he pushed past a police officer and ran off into the night. He was chased and caught, and when searched was found to be carrying two small bags of cocaine. The prosecutor said Berry subsequently gave a "no comment" interview and she said Miss Richards did not support the prosecution.
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Jordan Berry, of Heol Frank, Penlan, Swansea, had previously pleaded guilty to breaching a restraining order, assaulting an emergency worker, and possession of cocaine when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has five previous conviction for 14 offences including robbery, domestic batteries, and breaching a restraining order. In February this year Berry was made the subject of a community order after breaching the restraining order in respect of Miss Richards.
Stephen Thomas, for Berry, said notwithstanding the defendant's history of offending and non-compliance with court orders there was a positive pre-sentence report on his client and he said the choice for the court was to impose what would be a relatively short custodial sentence or to give Berry "another chance to change his ways". The barrister noted that Miss Richards did not support the prosecution and had written letters to the defendant while he had been held on remand in prison awaiting sentence. He said Berry wanted to sort his life out and get back to work and he realised he had to stay from Miss Richards.
Judge Catherine Richards told Berry he had now breached the restraining order designed to protect Miss Richards three times with the third breach happening a month after he had been sentenced for an earlier breach. She said it was clear the defendant had a "complete disregard for court orders" and she said she did not consider there was any realistic prospect of rehabilitation in his case at the present time. With a one-third discount for his guilty pleas Berry was sentenced to 12 months in prison.
If you or someone you know is affected by domestic abuse visit the Live Fear Free website or call the helpline on 0808 80 10 800.
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