A Newry man who subjected his partner to a sustained violent attack – and kept her imprisoned in a bedroom for almost two days – has been jailed.
Gerard Lennon, of Damolly Road, dragged his then girlfriend, who “feared for her life”, from her bed by the hair and repeatedly bit, kicked and punched her in an attack His Honour Judge Ramsey KC said warranted nothing less than a prison sentence.
The 44-year-old appeared before Newry Crown Court on Wednesday accused of false imprisonment, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, domestic abuse, and criminal damage.
Judge Ramsey, in delivering his verdict, recounted the incident which occurred on dates between January 13 and January 16 last year.
The victim was dragged from her bed by the hair, repeatedly bitten, kicked and punched to her head on the ground.
Throughout the incident, “she had severe panic attacks and she feared for her life”.
She had retreated to the corner of the room, but Lennon put her back in the bed and was screaming in her face, biting her several times.
It was reported that he “kicked her between the legs at least six times resulting in vaginal bleeding”.
She also alleged, at one stage, “he got a razor and threatened to shave her head”.
The judge continued: “On another occasion, when he was punching her, she hit her head off the bedroom wall [and] while attempting to contact a friend to come and collect her, he took her phone from her, prevented her leaving the property, locked the door, took the phone from her and damaged it.
“Throughout the incident, whenever he left the room, he locked her in as he left, and upon re-entering.
“Apart from allowing her to use the bathroom, he kept her locked up in the bedroom. He only eventually allowed her to leave the property in the afternoon of Monday, January 15, when she walked to a neighbouring house and ordered a taxi take her home.”
The victim said Lennon had a “jealous nature” and would often become “violent and aggressive with her during their on-off relationship”, subjecting her to “regular and degrading verbal abuse”.
Initially, the victim declined to provide a statement because “she was afraid of what he would do”, however, in early February 2024 she received a phone call from Lennon who indicated to her that “he was going to lie, and claim she attacked him with a hammer, and he was only acting in self-defence”.
The court heard how Lennon “offered her money and a new TV, which he believed was an attempt to stop her making a statement to police”.
Judge Ramsey referenced the defendant’s 27 previous convictions of which “at least 10 relate to offences of violence and this is not the first offence against his partners”.
A pre-sentence report highlighted Lennon’s issues with alcohol addiction – “a problematic issue in his life for many years” and that his “empathy was limited”, that he tended to deflect responsibility for his behaviour.
Judge Ramsey said a victim impact statement conveyed how the complainant “still struggles with what happened to her”.
He added: “She has problems sleeping at night…she has trust issues, and it affected her relationship with new partners…. [and] the overall aftermath has led to a variety of challenges in her life.”
The judge also said the sustained nature of the attack and the attempts to “dissuade her from complaining” were aggravating features in the case.
As a result, Lennon was handed a two year custodial sentence, of which 12 months will be spent behind bars and the other 12 months on licence.
He was also given a three year restraining order against the victim.
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