2009: MAN IS JAILED FOR ASSAULTING PARTNER
A man who caused his partner to live in terror in front of her children has been given a prison term.Paul Stokes received a 26-week sentence for assaulting Marie Lewis, which involved headbutts, strangulation, punches, and dragging her down stairs.
During sentencing, deputy district judge David Miller stated: “You have subjected your partner to a reign of terror and you seem to believe you can simply attack her when you are in a bad mood.” The first incident occurred in July last year when 24-year-old Stokes woke up, went downstairs, broke a computer table, grabbed Miss Lewis by the hair, and slapped her.
She ran upstairs, but he followed, pushed her onto the bed, headbutted her, and punched her.
He attempted to strangle her after she screamed.
The assault continued when Stokes dragged the mother of his child down the stairs by her hair and struck her again.
Both of Miss Lewis’s young children witnessed the attack.
In September, magistrates sentenced Stokes to a 12-month conditional discharge for this incident.
However, on Tuesday, April 7, he assaulted his partner again.
Early that morning, with her two-month-old son in a crib nearby, Miss Lewis was asleep when Stokes woke her by using his Xbox.
She asked him to be quiet, but he assaulted her by hitting her in the face.
Later that day, Miss Lewis planned to visit her mother in Worcester, but after leaving with her three children, Stokes ordered her to return.
When she refused, he grabbed her arm, pushed her against a car, and forced her back to the house.
In court, Miss Lewis stated: “I am frightened of Paul and afraid of further violence.
We argue daily, and it often ends with him hitting me.” Rob Macrory, representing Stokes, said he should receive credit for admitting guilt, explaining, “He wants to resolve everything so he can go back to family court and sort out the situation.” Deputy district judge Miller re-sentenced Stokes to 26 weeks for the July assault, revoked a previous community order related to a public order offense, and sentenced him to 16 weeks for that.
For the two new assault charges, he imposed 18-week sentences for each.
These sentences will run concurrently, with the judge warning, “If you continue to batter your partner, you will face much worse consequences, and you should use the coming weeks in prison to reflect.”
