Thug throttled partner in her own Leeds home then hid in wardrobe as police arrived
A thug beat and throttled his girlfriend after an argument at her Leeds home, then tried to hide in a wardrobe to avoid being arrested.
A neighbour frantically dialled 999 when she saw through the window that Stephen Black was attacking the woman, hitting her head against the window.
Black, who has previous convictions for violence, was jailed at Leeds Crown Court this week.
The court heard that the couple had been together for around a year. On October 28 they got into a verbal disagreement and Black grabbed her by the throat at her home in New Wortley.
The 36-year-old began to choke her and she struggled to breathe, briefly losing consciousness.
He slammed her head against the wall several times. The commotion was overheard by a neighbour who came to the door and could see Black striking her.
The police were called and arrived a short time later, finding Black hidden in the wardrobe.
He largely made no comments during his police interview.
He later admitted ABH and strangulation. Black, of no fixed address, appeared in court over a video link from HMP Hull where he was being held on remand.
Mitigating, John Bottomley said that Black “fully accepted responsibility” for his actions.
He said that despite having 13 previous convictions, he had stayed out of trouble for a lengthy period of time until this incident.
Judge Christopher Batty jailed him for 22 months and said: “This was a sustained and prolonged attack on your partner in her own home.
“You have some history of this type of offending, custody has to follow.”