BELPER MAN AVOIDS PRISON AFTER ASSAULTING EX-PARTNER IN NOTTINGHAM COURT
A woman-beater was told to look at his 'horrified' mother in the courtroom’s public gallery as he was spared immediate prison.Christopher Dawe shook in fear in the dock throughout his sentencing at Nottingham Crown Court for repeatedly attacking his now ex-partner.The 31-year-old’s "cycle of manipulation” on his Nottingham victim saw him head-butt, punch and stamp on her.
And in a victim impact statement she told how even almost three years on she still carries with her the “emotional scars" of what the defendant did to her.Handing him a suspended sentence, Judge Stuart Rafferty KC said: “Relationships are never easy whether they are happy or sad.
But you behaved like an overgrown child and you should be absolutely ashamed of yourself.”“Just look at your mother’s face in the public gallery - she is horrified.
Children have their vulnerabilities about them sometimes and they (parents) think their child is perfect just like them.”“But children are people in their own right and some parents have to stand by and look in abject horror as their child goes off the rails not just once but repeatedly.
Some day you will be in a new relationship and if you repeat the sort of behaviour you have shown then to prison you will go.”“If, during the next 18 months, you come back before the court, you will come back before me and I will remember why I am doing what I am doing today and you won’t get another chance.
As soon as you get out that door you say sorry to your mum.”In a detailed account, prosecutor Nicola Patten explained that Dawe and his victim, in a relationship for around two years, experienced assaults mainly in Rushcliffe in early 2022.
The attacks involved head-butts, punches, and strangulation, with physical violence escalating over time, including bruising and stomping.
The victim described the emotional impact of the abuse, noting she still bears emotional scars despite physical injuries healing.
Christopher Dawe, of Chapel Hill, Belper, pleaded guilty to five counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and one count of common assault.
He has prior convictions for drink-driving but no previous domestic violence offenses.
During the hearing, his parents supported him, and the court was informed that Dawe has been in contact with a counselor for anxiety.
He was sentenced to 20 months in jail, suspended for 18 months, and a five-year restraining order was imposed not to contact the victim or visit any of her possible addresses.
