A man dragged his partner down the street by her hair and later beat her up while she was on the toilet, a court has heard.
Jamie Michael Swinburne, 32, appeared in the Invercargill District Court last week after pleading guilty to a raft of violence charges including assault with intent to injure, resisting police, disorderly behaviour and threatening to kill.
Judge Duncan Harvey sentenced the defendant to 13 months’ imprisonment.
The woman came to the doorway and Swinburne grabbed her by the hair, forcing her to walk 140m down the street.
The defendant dragged the victim by her hair and told her "I’m going to kill you".
The pair were heading towards Swinburne's house and when they crossed Tweed St, he twice attempted to punch the victim in the face.
She made a comment to the man and he reacted by pushing her through a hedge on to the concrete.
He then told her to "get up and keep walking".
Police received a number of calls about Swinburne’s violent behaviour and they responded.
The authorities served a Police Safety Order on the defendant.
Five days later, Swinburne went to the victim’s home, gaining entry through the back door.
The court heard it was unclear what happened when he entered but the woman went to the bathroom and Swinburne followed her and stood in the doorway.
She sat on the toilet and told the man to get out of the house.
The defendant then kicked her in the ribs and torso about five times causing her to hit her head on the cistern.
The man then threw a number of punches at the victim before she fled to the kitchen.
There Swinburne continued to attack her while she sat on a chair including a blow to the back of her head which caused her to black out momentarily.
The woman messaged her father who later picked her up.
Judge Duncan Harvey said Swinburne had an "appalling" criminal history.
"I have no doubt that [the victim] was extremely scared," he said.
"People that get themselves involved in domestic incidents like this often go one step too far ... And someone ends up dead."
Judge Harvey said Swinburne’s past provided some explanation for his behaviour.
He said the defendant being assessed at a medium risk of reoffending was "a very generous way of describing things".
He made a protection order in favour of the victim.
