CURTIS PEARCE FROM BLACKBURN SENTENCED FOR VIOLENT ASSAULT AND OFFENCES IN PRESTON

A violent offender with a significant criminal history threatened a woman he had been seeing for just two weeks with a hammer, leading to a courtroom sentencing. Curtis Pearce, 33, had met the victim earlier in the spring and, at the time, was aware that she was homeless. He invited her to stay with him, Preston Crown Court was told.

Prosecutor Alison Whalley explained that during the initial two weeks of their acquaintance, everything appeared normal, but tensions soon arose as Pearce became jealous, resulting in arguments.

She stated: “On June 7, she was out with her friends and he began calling her. She didn’t answer, but then he started sending her abusive messages and also threatened her dog.”

According to the court, the victim then drove back to Pearce’s residence after seeing him in a car along the way. Pearce rang her and warned, “you better wipe that f***ing smile off your face before you get home.”

When she arrived, a lengthy argument ensued. Ms Whalley said: “The victim was not responding, and he was getting angry. She eventually went to sleep but was awakened by a phone call from Pearce, which he answered. The caller was making remarks about her, and Pearce began calling her a slag and demanded to see her phone.”

The defendant then slammed her phone against the kitchen worktop, smashing the screen. When she attempted to leave, Pearce prevented her, grabbed her by the hair, and wielded a hammer, swinging it around. He then knelt on her and pressed the hammer onto her face.

Her phone rang again, and Pearce started recording her on video. He also demanded she sleep with him. The following morning, another argument took place, but the victim managed to escape and flagged down a passing vehicle.

Police attended Pearce’s address, recovered the hammer, and found evidence of a cannabis cultivation involving ten plants, with the electricity bypassed.

Pearce, of Horden View, Blackburn, has a criminal record with 16 convictions across 48 offences. He pleaded guilty to charges including criminal damage, threatening a person with an offensive weapon, producing a controlled drug classified as B, and abstracting electricity.

The court's recorder, Michelle Brown, detailed Pearce’s past convictions, including contempt of court for aggressive behaviour resulting in a seven-day jail sentence, reflecting a long history of violence since his first youth conviction in 2006. His record includes convictions for assault and battery in 2007, affray and battery the same year, actual bodily harm in 2008, a section 20 assault in 2009, further assaults, and criminal damage in 2011. In 2012, he received a suspended sentence for actual bodily harm but breached it in 2013 by assaulting someone again, and was later imprisoned for robbery.

More recent offences include the 2022 assault on his previous partner, for which he served prison time, followed by a driving while disqualified offence while under supervision. The judge highlighted that Pearce’s history exhibits a persistent pattern of violence against partners, describing his behaviour as entrenched and disturbing.

Ultimately, Pearce was sentenced to two years and seven months in prison and was given a six-year restraining order to protect the victim.