Louth man jailed for breaking restraining order after assault on ex-girlfriend

A 27-year-old Louth tyre fitter, who failed to properly complete his community order programme following an assault on his partner and then breached a restraining order towards her, has been sent to prison for six months.
Skegness Magistrates' Court ENGEMN00120130423103927Skegness Magistrates' Court ENGEMN00120130423103927
Skegness Magistrates' Court ENGEMN00120130423103927

David James Riley of Eastgate, was appearing for sentence before District Judge Derek French at Skegness Magistrates’ Court, after having been convicted after a trial of breaching a restraining order relating to his former partner.

He also admitted that he had failed to comply with a community order imposed following an assault on her in August 2014 at their then home in Hogsthorpe in which he put her in a headlock and dragged her around the kitchen just four weeks after she had given birth to their child.

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The court heard that on the afternoon of October 24 last year, Riley had seen his former partner while she was out with their child and her new partner in Louth and he had shouted at her, stuck his chest out and raised a finger to them.

This was a breach of the restraining order that had been imposed at the court hearing following the assault in 2014, said Daniel Pietryka, prosecuting.

The Probation Service told the judge that twice Riley had been guilty of disruptive behaviour during his course for ‘building better relationships’ that was part of his community order and had even been offered a course in a different town but was also disruptive there.

It was said Riley had completed an unpaid work requirement that was part of the order but was ‘no longer suitable’ for the programme and that the Probation Service recommended a custodial sentence as an alternative.

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Mitigating, Beris Brickles said Riley was ‘saddened’ he could not complete the programme as he was more than half way through it and thought he was getting some benefit from it.

Mr Brickles said the breach of the restraining order was ‘not a deliberate contact but by chance, across the street’ and that he had not made any threats.

Revoking the original community order, the judge said Riley had a history of nine previous convictions for assault and had previously received a suspended prison sentence which he had breached.

Sentencing him to 12 weeks in prison as an alternative to the community order imposed in January last year, the judge said that his options were limited.

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Turning to the latest offence of breaching the restraining order, the judge said his victim was ‘still fearful and anxious’ and that this had had ‘a huge impact on her’.

He imposed a further 14 weeks in prison to be served consecutively to the first sentence, making a total of 26 weeks in prison.

He was also ordered on his release to pay a total of £330 in costs and damages and would be subject to a further restraining order as the original one had now expired.