Man who repeatedly slammed partner's head against toilet given suspended sentence

Sentencing Keelan O’Kane at Limavady Magistrates’ Court, Deputy District Judge Trevor Browne said while “the custody threshold is certainly passed, I’m prepared to give him the opportunity to prove himself” having heard that he recently underwent treatment for alcohol addiction.

Imposing jail sentences totalling eight months, the judge warned the 29-year-old that if he committed further offences in the next two years “you will be straight back here and leaving by the back door rather than the front door”.

At an earlier hearing O’Kane, from Ard Na Smoll in Dungiven, entered guilty pleas to four offences across two bills of indictment.

A prosecuting lawyer told the court, which was sitting in Coleraine, the first set of charges related to events last January when the topless victim had to flee to a neighbour’s home to seek sanctuary.

She told police there had been ongoing incidents of verbal and physical abuse between January 24-26 but that at one point, O’Kane had choked her so hard that she had lost consciousness.

When she came round “there was some form of reconciliation” but when the victim tried to leave, O’Kane “grabbed her by the hair and slammed her against the wall and the toilet”.

“He slammed her head more than 10 times resulting in swelling and bruising,” said the lawyer, adding that O’Kane had trailed her by the hair with such force that “clumps of hair had been pulled from her head”.

The victim made another break for freedom but O’Kane grabbed her by her top, ripping it off her as she fled and the court heard that such was the victim’s terror that she ran topless into the street and to the neighbour’s house for help.

In that case O’Kane entered guilty pleas to two charges of causing actual bodily harm and one of non-fatal strangulation but the court heard that about a month later, on February 23, she was assaulted by O’Kane again.

Police were alerted by an abandoned 999 call where a man could be heard shouting “get off me” and as the number was connected to the victim, officers went to her house.

The “intoxicated” victim told police there had been a verbal argument before O’Kane “held her nose”. He later admitted common assault in that case.

Lodging a plea in mitigation O’Kane’s defence counsel conceded his behaviour had been “simply appalling … there can be no legitimate question but that the offending crosses the custody threshold”.

He said while there was no doubt the judge “will be giving acute consideration” to jailing O’Kane, “the thrust of the plea is that the court’s approach must extend beyond punitive measures” and also look to rehabilitation and avoid further offending.

The barrister said O’Kane had recently completed an inpatient alcohol treatment and detox programme and that since then, he had managed to stay abstinent so while deserving of punishment, the court could take a chance.

In addition to the suspended sentence Judge Brown also imposed a two-year restraining order.