2016: HALESOWEN MAN JAILED FOR BRUTAL ASSAULT ON EX-GIRLFRIEND
A violent incident in Halesowen resulted in a man receiving a jail sentence of one year and nine months for assaulting his former partner just days after she ended their five-year relationship.Lee Astley had been dismissed by the woman due to his aggressive behaviour, and she later described her feelings to police, stating, "I felt like a slave to him.
He terrified and abused me." During court proceedings, Sarah Allen, the prosecutor, explained that Astley forced entry into their shared home, broke several ornaments, and then seized a large kitchen knife.
He subsequently threw the knife at his ex-partner, causing a significant cut on her thigh and resulting in heavy bleeding, Wolverhampton Crown Court was told.
The woman managed to run upstairs, but Astley followed, smashing open her bedroom door before launching a series of punches to her head and torso.
The assault concluded swiftly, but as Astley was leaving, he took her mobile phone and shattered it.
The woman managed to make an emergency call which was heard by the operator, keeping the line open.
She was later transported to hospital with a deep but narrow wound, along with cuts and bruises on her head and body.
Astley, aged 33, pleaded guilty to wounding, and the judge, Recorder Stephen Thomas, remarked, "You armed yourself with a fearsome weapon and you threw it at your former partner." In his defence, Blondelle Thompson brought up the victim's 2011 assault conviction and noted that the couple had a history of heavy drinking, with Astley having difficulties expressing frustration and coping during the breakup.
