Man attacked partner after boozy breakfast

May 19 2011 by Alistair Watson, West Lothian Courier

A MAN assaulted his partner after an early morning argument about him drinking Buckfast for breakfast.

Steven Kelly had woken at 5.30am and began drinking a bottle of Buckfast, watching TV and playing his computer.

At 8.30am, his partner woke up and went through to the living room where Kelly was.

She asked him for a light for her cigarette and he held it close to her face and began igniting it resulting in her pushing his arm away.

“The accused quickly became aggressive and pushed her on to the couch,” fiscal depute Julia McLaren told Livingston Sheriff Court.

“He grabbed her around the throat and compressed her neck. She couldn’t fight back at that point because of the position she was in.

“He then grabbed her by the hair and she struggled with the accused and kicked him so that he released his grip.

“She managed to break free and climbed over the back of the couch and thereafter ran from the house.

“She was seen running down the street by a witness with the accused running after her and they phoned the police.”

When officers arrived they found the accused standing at the front door of the house in St Andrews Way in Livingston he shared with his partner. They noted he had blood on his nose and appeared to be extremely agitated.

He was interviewed and admitted he had been drinking.

Last week at the court, Kelly pled guilty to assault to injury.

His solicitor, Andy Aitken, told the court his client had been drinking heavily following a family bereavement.

“He had abstained from both drink and drugs but that had been set aside in February this year following the bereavement,” Mr Aitken said.

“For a period of six weeks, he was drinking heavily.

“On the morning in question he had been drinking alcohol having fallen asleep for a little while after having consumed alcohol the night before.

“She had come down and there was an argument between the pair in particular about his drinking, understandably given the time.

“She had lashed out and struck him and he has reacted entirely inappropriately and violently.

“It brings him great shame and he is embarrassed by it and hopes for an opportunity to apologise for it in person.

“He accepts that this incident was entirely his fault which was not helped by the considerable amount of alcohol in his system.

“Despite not having any record for common law assault he accepts his record places him in jeopardy of losing his liberty.”

Sentencing Kelly to be supervised for a year and ordering him to carry out 135 hours of unpaid work, Sheriff Grahame Fleming said: “This was a despicable offence but I think you would benefit from probation as well as punishment.

“I propose to give you a community payback order instead of sending you to prison.”