NOTTINGHAM OFFENDER SENTENCED FOR VIOLENT ASSAULT AND THREATS
A prolific Nottingham criminal named Ronnie Hodge, aged 44, of Bilborough, has been sentenced to 14 months in prison after a violent attack on a woman friend of his partner.Hodge was involved in multiple criminal activities, having a record of 62 previous offences including 16 for violence, such as assault and wounding.
The court heard that Hodge carried out an assault on a woman after sending her threatening messages, including threats to stab her in the face and burn her house down.
He then visited her house in the early hours, described as ‘angry and out of control,’ and launched a sustained attack on her, kicking her to the chest and in the face, which caused her to lose consciousness and experience significant headaches.
The judge highlighted Hodge’s troubled background, stating that he was “born in a brothel and was selling drugs by the age of 11,” and that his drug use and criminal behavior have been driven by a life marred by tragedy.
The judge added that Hodge’s actions crossed the custodial threshold and that courts would not tolerate kicking someone in the face, resulting in immediate custody.
Despite his history, the defendant's barrister noted that Hodge, who had been on bail for allegations against his partner, was “at a particularly low ebb,” and was under the influence of crack cocaine at the time, as a way to cope with his mother’s death from lung cancer.
The court hopes that upon release he will stay out of trouble and off drugs.
Prosecutor Lesley Pidcock stated that Hodge and his partner had been together for several years but that he was recently bailed for alleged offences against her.
Hodge had previously served time for numerous crimes, and his current conviction was for assault occasioning actual bodily harm and malicious communication.
