Judge's warning after wife beater jailed (From Warrington Guardian)
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Judge's warning after wife beater jailed
2:00pm Wednesday 24th October 2012 in News
Warrington Crown Court
A JUDGE sent a stark warning to the wife of a man he jailed for attacking her after she admitted she wanted to rekindle their relationship.
Judge Nicholas Woodward told the wife of 26-year-old James Ward, of Howson Road, Orford, he was worried for her safety, after James had already attacked her on two separate occasions earlier this year.
Sentencing James to a total of 17 months in prison he said: “For some time you have been treating your former partner with habitual violence in an extremely abusive relationship which you want to continue and she wants to continue.
“I’m sure she doesn’t want the abusive part.
“This court has pointed out to her twice the serious risk she is putting herself in.
“I’m extremely worried about that because I take the view that you represent a high level risk of reoffending in the future as a serious risk to her.
“If she is not prepared to accept the assistance of the court there is nothing the court can do. She made it abundantly clear she intends to continue her relationship with you.”
Warrington Crown Court heard on Monday how on May 19 and 20 James subjected his wife to a series of assaults and told her their relationship was over when he said so.
Judge Woodward added: “It was domestic violence in its worst form. The injuries were not as serious as I fear they could be in the future.”
In one of his previous assaults James had been handed a restraining order but Judge Woodward revoked the order because the pair had ignored it from the start.
The court heard he also had a previous offence of battery of a partner from 2009.
Peter Moss, defending, told the court James had a problem with the mixture of alcohol and a depressive condition.
But since going to prison a period of abstinence had helped him and he planned to seek counselling.
He added: “We can only hope that he will come out of prison a better man and more able to cope with things than he has been showing for the last three years.”
He was handed one month consecutive sentences for two breaches of restraining orders, two months each consecutively for five counts of common assault, three months for the breach of a suspended sentence and resentenced his battery charge from February to two months consecutively after revoking the restraining order.
Comments(3)
Nick Tessla
says...
5:20pm Wed 24 Oct 12
mediaman wrote:There is an ethical need to protect the vulnerable. Clearly neither of us knows the full facts but it would appear that the victim falls into that category and should meet with sympathy not condemnation or or any future incidents to be ignored.
It may seem wrong to say but if she goes back to him and it happens again, the court should not hear the case! as in my opinion clearly she will not learn and deserves to deal with the consequences on her own! I just prey there are no children involved!
I have known women - intelligent, outwardly confident and apparently rational women who have not only accepted being in an abusive relationship but, in some circumstances, made every effort to maintain that relationship. Some have been serial abusees.
I would hope that someone in that position would be offered some form of counselling - many may have a deep rooted problem. They should certainly not be ignored - as the next time they are heard about may be their inquest.
grey_man
says...
8:22am Thu 25 Oct 12
I accept the point but abusive relationships are very complex things and as Nick says, people behave in ways that are outwardly irrational when they are victims of abusers.
mediaman says...
3:21pm Wed 24 Oct 12
I just prey there are no children involved!