DURHAM MAN JAILED FOR ASSAULTING EX-PARTNER AND MAN IN HER HOME
An intruder who sneaked into his ex-partner’s home and found her in the bedroom with another man went on to attack both in his drunken and drug-fuelled rage.Durham Crown Court heard that Joseph Anthony Coils carried out the assault at his former partner’s Shildon home shortly after his release from prison following a previous assault on the same woman, for which he was made subject of a restraining order, just weeks earlier.
When he entered the premises on December 1, last year, via an insecure window, he was in breach of the order.
He attacked the man present and ejected him from the house before turning on his former partner.
Ignoring her protests, he assaulted her in the bedroom, dragging her downstairs by her hair and delivering repeated blows to her face, which fractured her eye socket and left her with cuts and bruises.
The police arrested him after she called them.
Coils, 23, of Burns Close, Stanley, admitted breaching the restraining order but denied causing grievous bodily harm with intent.
He was found guilty on the third day of his trial, last month.
The court sentenced him to seven years in prison with an extended three-year license period, citing that he posed a danger of further serious offences.
The victim suffered serious psychological harm and permanent facial scarring, and she expressed fears that he might breach court orders again.
The judge emphasized that Coils had previously served a 36-week sentence for similar violence and was warned by the court, yet he still committed this offence.
The sentence reflects the court’s view of his dangerousness and his breach of orders aimed at protecting his ex-partner.
He is prohibited from contacting her for 15 years, and he must serve the specified portion of his sentence before possible parole consideration.
