A violent offender who attacked his former partner in her home and strangled her until she blacked out has been jailed for 51 months. David Strachan, 44, throttled the victim with his hands around her neck, restricting her breathing, and she lost consciousness during the assault in Prestwick.
Details of the attack
Strachan attacked the woman again less than two months later when he punched her in the face in Ayr. At the High Court in Edinburgh, a judge told him that although an allegation that he attempted to murder the woman during the strangulation was deleted from the charge, it still remained a serious offence.
Judge David Young KC said: "You were under the influence at the time the attack took place in her own home, indeed her bedroom." He said Strachan followed his victim and pinned her to the floor and strangled her before a friend intervened and shouted at him to get off the woman.
Guilty pleas
Strachan, a prisoner at Kilmarnock, admitted assaulting the woman to her injury and to the danger of life on August 18 last year by placing his hands around her neck and compressing her neck, restricting her breathing and causing her to lose consciousness. He also admitted behaving in a threatening or abusive way on the same date at her home by shouting, swearing and making derogatory remarks towards the victim.
Strachan pleaded guilty to two further assaults on October 2 last year at Carrick Street and Boswell Park, in Ayr, when he punched his former partner and her new partner in the face. The judge said Strachan approached them in the street and they tried to get away by walking off but he pursued them.
Background and sentencing
The judge noted that Strachan's criminal record included offences for violence, disorder and weapons. The court heard that at the time of the attacks Strachan was living a chaotic lifestyle which was blighted by drug abuse.
The judge ordered that he should be under supervision for a further 18 months when he will be on licence and can be returned to prison if he breaches its conditions. He also made a non-harassment order banning Strachan from approaching or attempting to approach his ex-partner for an indefinite period.
