Nine North East criminals have been sentenced after attacking and threatening members of their own families, bringing them to justice for their actions. The offenders, based in communities from Newcastle to Gateshead, and Washington to North Shields, were convicted of trying to cause serious harm to their relatives.
In one case, 41-year-old Josh Rooney subjected his son to a shocking public beating that left witnesses fearing he was dead. Rooney stamped on his son's head, kicked him in the face, and repeatedly punched him after a drunken row over whether it was 4am or 4pm.
Brother's Strangulation Attack
Thomas Dunlavy, 42, of Milvain Avenue, Newcastle, strangled his sister until she went bright red in the face and couldn't breathe. On July 25, his sister went into her garden with her adult daughter, and his mother came down, saying Dunlavy was in a bad state of mind. When Dunlavy saw them chatting, he became angry and started shouting, then grabbed her throat.
Prosecutor Emily Sanderson said: "He grabbed it with both hands and squeezed it. She couldn't speak or breathe." Dunlavy, who has 52 previous convictions and was on three suspended sentences, pleaded guilty to strangulation, assault by beating, two counts of damaging property and threatening to damage property. He was jailed for two years and eight months and given a five-year restraining order.
Son's Harassment and Assaults
Thomas Baxter, 41, of Langley Road, North Shields, breached a ban on contacting his mum by bombarding her with phone calls. On March 11, he contacted his mother by phone using a withheld number, saying: "How long do you think you can ignore me?" and "What sort of mother are you". He continued contacting her for the next 45 minutes, calling her 13 times from a withheld number.
Baxter, who has 18 previous convictions and was jailed for ten weeks in October last year for common assault after pushing his mum, pleaded guilty to breaching a restraining order and was jailed for 30 weeks.
David Parkin, 46, of Castlereagh Street, Sunderland, assaulted his elderly parents, leaving his mother with "horrendous" injuries. In April, the couple went on holiday to Spain and reluctantly let Parkin stay at their home. On April 30, he was still there when they returned, and he punched his dad before turning on his mum, punching her four or five times in the face. Parkin, described as having a "shocking record" of previous offences, pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm on his mother, common assault on his dad and breaching the protection from harassment order. He was jailed for two years.
Addict's Threats and Violent Acts
William Taylor, 34, of Monks Park Way, Longbenton, flouted a restraining order imposed to protect his mum on several occasions. On June 17, he turned up at her home, lost his temper, demanded coffee and milk, and kicked the door. When a neighbour shouted at him to stop, Taylor said "I will f****** stab you". Taylor, who has 60 previous convictions, pleaded guilty to two counts of breaching the order, criminal damage and threatening behaviour. He was jailed for 16 months.
Wayne Bell, 42, of The Crescent, Gateshead, attacked his wife after accusing her of cheating over messages she sent about a new tattoo. Bell grabbed the woman, causing her to hit her head and fall to the floor, then grabbed her throat and spat at her. When her young daughter told him to leave her mum alone, he threatened to stab the child. Bell, who has 22 previous convictions, pleaded guilty to common assault and was sentenced to a two-year community order and given a restraining order.
Boiling Water Attack and Further Sentences
Daniel Gaunt, 22, previously of Jarrow, South Tyneside, threw boiling water filled with salt over his dad, leaving him with burns to his neck and upper chest. In revenge for a row, Gaunt filled and boiled a kettle before adding a significant amount of salt to increase the damage, then threw it over his father in front of his gran. The victim was taken to hospital with superficial burns which had blistered. Gaunt, who has 26 previous convictions, was found guilty by a jury of attempted GBH with intent and jailed for four-and-a-half years.
Jamie Davison, 34, of Killingworth Court, Washington, breached a restraining order for the sixth time by contacting his mum. The Probation Service asked magistrates to revoke his community order and send him to jail as he could "no longer be managed in the community". However, they gave him one last chance with a 26-week prison sentence, suspended for 24 months, and he will be electronically tagged to stay away from his mother's address.
Jeff Stewart, 39, of Amelia Close, Newcastle, was jailed for a cocaine-fuelled attack against his own mother. Stewart slammed her head against a fridge and hit her over the head twice with heavy shopping bags during the attack. Sentencing him, Judge Carolyn Scott said: "You said you had been on a four-day cocaine bender running up to the offending. It was a prolonged assault." Stewart was jailed for 18 months with a five-year restraining order.
Josh Rooney, 41, of Acomb Court, Gateshead, was sentenced for assault occasioning actual bodily harm after the public beating of his son. Rooney, who has 23 previous convictions and was subject to a community order at the time, was sentenced to two years suspended for two years.
