Mother begs court for leniency to partner in strangulation assault case
Tom Tuite
A mother has begged a court not to jail her partner, who threatened to kill her in front of their children, and pinned her down, barely able to breathe, until gardaí intervened.
The Midlands man in his 40s pleaded guilty at Mullingar Circuit Criminal Court to assault by strangulation, driving without insurance, breach of the peace, violating a safety order and theft.
The woman told the court, "he is not a bad person when sober".
Judge Kenneth Connolly heard that on a date last year, the man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, arrived at a local supermarket highly intoxicated. He verbally abused staff before taking an alcoholic beverage from the shelf and drinking it.
Despite being under a road ban, he drove home and had a row outside with another person, as the victim tried to get him to come into the house.
He then turned on her, saying, "I'll kill you", and grabbed her by her arms while his children were present.
Gardaí had been alerted following the scene in the supermarket and went to the man's house.
The court heard that when they arrived, they found that the woman had been pinned on the bed by her partner, and he was pushing under her chin while she was "unable to breathe."
The court heard she was struggling to breathe as officers arrived and intervened and ultimately they had to pepper spray the man to subdue him.
His wife sat beside him during the hearing but also gave a victim impact statement.
She spoke about her husband's problems with depression and said that he had not been taking his medication at the time. The woman told Judge Connolly her partner "became a different person" when he abused alcohol.
She said the family situation had significantly improved since then because he had stopped drinking except for one relapse.
The victim believed that he had been self-medicating with alcohol at the time of the attack, and said it would be devastating for her and their children if he were jailed.
The victim also explained that she did not think he still posed a danger.
"I would not be here like I am if I was in danger, if the kids were in danger," she said.
The court heard she had also had his safety order taken out at the time, which he breached, and he has been referred to a residential addiction treatment centre and counselling.
The woman said the man had also attempted suicide previously and she spoke about the effect of the death of a close family member on him.
He left the home for some weeks after the attack before she let him return on the promise that he would quit drinking.
Speaking about the incident, she described it as terrifying. "It left a mark, but in the aftermath, something good has come from it, real change, and we are a stronger family unit," she added.
The court heard he had 22 previous convictions, including assault, motoring offences and obstructing gardaí and that he was also the primary "breadwinner" for the family. He had also been banned from driving at the time of the incident.
Judge Connolly said he still had concerns about the woman's safety as he adjourned sentencing until a date in April.
The man sat with his head bowed and did not address the court, but apologised through his counsel. The court also heard he was back on his medication and that there had been no further incidents.
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can contact Women’s Aid (24-hour freephone helpline at 1800-341 900, email helpline@womensaid.ie) or Men’s Aid Ireland (confidential helpline at 01-554 3811, email hello@mensaid.ie) for support and information.
Safe Ireland also offers a number of local services and helplines at safeireland.ie/get-help/where-to-find-help/. In the case of an emergency, always dial 999/112.
