Violent Leeds thug jailed after 'prolonged and persistent' assaults on former partners
One victim was left with permanent scarring as a result of the attack
A violent Leeds thug who beat up two women and subjected them to “prolonged and persistent” assaults has been jailed.
John Nicholson was sentenced at Leeds Crown Court yesterday (Tuesday, August 4) after pleading guilty on the first day of his trial to two counts of assault causing actual bodily harm and one count of assault by beating.
Prosecutor Graham O’Sullivan told the court how the defendant, who has 51 previous convictions from 135 offences, subjected the two women to “prolonged and persistent” assaults.
He detailed how in January 2025, the 59-year-old attacked his then partner at her home in Leeds.
After reporting the incident to the police, the court heard how Nicholson contacted the woman “every day” threatening her and left her fearing for her life.
The court heard how the first incident occurred less than two months after Nicholson was given a conditional discharge for possession of Class A drugs.
Mr O’Sullivan then detailed how in two separate incidents in December 2025, the defendant “snapped” and attacked his new partner.
In the first incident, he said the Nicholson, of Borrowdale Crescent, Armley, attacked the woman in her kitchen.
The court then heard how a few weeks later, Nicholson again attacked the woman.
In a victim impact statement read to the court, she detailed how the incident had left her in “emotional and psychological distress,” and unable to eat and sleep.
She has been left with permanent scarring as a result of the attack.
Defence counsel Eddison Flint told the court that Nicholson has a history of alcohol and drug addiction and is now regularly tested as clean.
Mr Flint said that his client, who is a licensed crane operator involved in putting up buildings around Leeds city centre, was recently named “prisoner of the month,” and has taken on mentor and health care representative roles.
“He is trying to make the most of it and doesn’t want to be there again,” he added.
Passing sentence, Recorder David Gordon said that the photographs of the injuries and victim impact statement “spoke for themselves” and that the incident showed “gratuitous degradation” towards both victims.
He sentenced Nicholson to a total of 45 months in prison and made him the subject of two 10-year restraining orders to keep him away from the victims.