A jealous bully grabbed hold of his terrified ex-girlfriend, threw her to the floor and started strangling her.
She was left feeling dizzy and nauseous and she was gasping for breath but he callously dismissed her distress and contemptuously asked her why she was being “dramatic” because her ordeal supposedly wasn’t “that bad” in the end, Hull Crown Court heard.
John Norris, 34, previously living in Hull, admitted offences of intentional strangulation and assault on May 14 last year.
Samantha Laws, prosecuting, said that Norris and the woman had been in a relationship for about seven months before the incident but he was still living at her home in Hull at the time. An argument erupted about her dog.
He had later been drinking when he arrived at her home at about 12.45pm. He wanted his bicycle. “She refused to let him in the house but told him that it was in the garden,” said Miss Laws.
Norris kicked the gate open and went inside the house. He tried to take her mobile phone from her and was aggressive towards her dog. He walked across to a window and took hold of the woman by her arms.
He dragged her to the window, causing bruises, but she managed to get free and slapped him.
“He got her in a headlock and forced her to look out of the window,” said Miss Laws. “He accused her of cheating on him and she kept asking him to get off her but he refused.
“He accused her of having his phone. She rang it to prove that she didn’t and he became more volatile. He took hold of her by the scruff of her work tunic and pushed her against the wall.”
The woman was able to get free but he grabbed her around her shoulder area. She “upper cut him” in a further attempt to get free. “He stood up, threw her onto the floor and came over and put his right hand around her throat, applying pressure and squeezing,” said Miss Laws.
“It lasted for under a minute but her limbs went limp. He dragged her back up and said: ‘What are you being dramatic for? It weren’t that bad’.”
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The woman was left feeling dizzy and nauseous and she was gasping for breath. “She was able to flee and lock herself in her car before calling the police,” said Miss Laws.
The police arrived but Norris was still aggressive. They had to use Pava spray to calm him down and they called for further officers to attend. During police interview, he made no comment to all questions. He had convictions for eight previous offences.
Connor Stuart, mitigating, said that Norris deeply regretted his behaviour and he pleaded guilty. He had kicked his previous drug addiction and he had been clean of drugs for more than a year. He had previously suffered problems during his childhood.
Norris, of Eden House Road, Sunderland, was given a 20-month suspended prison sentence, 25 days’ rehabilitation and 26 sessions of a probation service thinking skills programme. He was given a 10-year restraining order.