A sheriff has warned that the courts are taking a 'dim' view of domestic abusers who choke their victims, as a man was jailed for 38 months after admitting two assaults on his ex-partner in Cumbernauld.
Details of the assaults
Gary Henderson, 33, appeared at Airdrie Sheriff Court where he pleaded guilty to two counts of assault. The court heard that on July 17 last year, he put his arm around the woman's neck and applied pressure at her home in Ivanhoe Road. The attack was stopped by a friend who intervened.
Prosecutor Jack Lindsay said the couple had been in an on-off relationship that ended in 2022 after eight years. After the split, the woman occasionally allowed Henderson to stay with her. On the night of the assault, he arrived with a friend who he claimed had been attacked. An argument escalated and Henderson became violent. When police arrived, the woman was 'in distress' and had red marks on her neck.
Henderson then breached bail conditions by going to his ex-partner's new home in Tarbolton Road, Cumbernauld on January 4. She agreed to let him sleep on the couch, but another argument ended with him punching her, giving her a bloodied nose. He has been in custody since his arrest on that occasion.
Sentencing and court warnings
Sheriff Derek Livingston backdated the 38-month sentence to January 5 and said Henderson will be under supervision for a year upon release from prison. He told the accused: 'The courts have been taking a fairly dim view of the compression of throats recently.' The sheriff also imposed a five-year non-harassment order.
In April, the Crown Office revealed that 50 per cent of domestic abuse victims have experienced non-fatal strangulation. A spokesman said: 'It is deeply concerning that the dangerous act of strangulation is increasingly prevalent. This is an extreme and distressing form of control and we are determined to tackle it.'
