'Mum, call the police': Telford woman being attacked by drunken partner
A Telford woman being attacked by her drunken partner managed to answer a telephone call from her mother - and told her to call the police.
The victim had already attempted to call 999 as she fought off her boyfriend, magistrates were told.
Steven Hicks, 30, admitted one charge of assault by beating at a previous hearing at Telford Magistrates Court and was yesterday told he could have been sent to prison for attacking his girlfriend on October 31 after drinking at her home in the town.
Instead Hicks, who has two previous prison sentences for assaults on a former partner, was given a 24-month community order with a supervision requirement, told to carry out 100 hours unpaid work and to complete a six-month alcohol treatment requirement.
He was also ordered to attend a "building better relationships" programme and ordered to pay £85 costs and a £60 victim surcharge.
Prosecuting, Mrs Kate Price, said the victim had come home to find the defendant drunk and she had told him to go to his mother's home.
She described Hicks, of Blakemore, Telford, as "slurring his words and acting differently".
Mrs Price said that Hicks had followed his girlfriend upstairs, grabbed a tobacco pouch out of her hand and when she tried to grab it back he pulled her to the floor and jumped on her.
She struggled underneath him for five minutes and managed to escape on to the landing, trying to call 999 on her phone.
During the tussle the victim's mother called her on the phone and she managed to call out "Mum! Call the police," before she felt a blow to the back of the head.
The victim received a pea-sized carpet burn, a half-inch cut to her left jaw and burning over her left knee.
Hicks had received two previous prison sentences for assaults on a former partner, the court was told.
Mrs Price said he received a 40-week suspended sentence for the first assault and had then been re-sentenced to 30 weeks in prison plus 12 weeks for the second assault.
Mr Shakeel Ahmed, for Hicks, said his client "acknowledges he has a drinking problem".
"He will get more help with the probation service to try to deal with the alcohol on a long term basis," said Mr Ahmed.
Magistrate David Silcock said a community order sought to address his alcohol problems.
"We could have sent you to prison and be done with it," he said. "We appreciate this is onerous, but so was the crime."
