A domestic abuser who strangled his pregnant partner 'for the craic' and threatened to 'hack her to death' has been jailed for three years. Joel Turton, 29, left the woman fearing for her life as he twice gripped her throat tightly on one night, leaving a bruise across her neck.
Weeks later, he launched a foul-mouthed verbal tirade during which he threatened to kill her and chop her up after accusing her of being unfaithful because she had changed the bed sheets. Newcastle Crown Court heard Turton, of Holderness Road, Hull, pleaded guilty to two counts of strangulation and threats to kill.
Attack in the bath
The court heard the woman had been in a relationship with Turton from June 2025 and they moved in together last November. On February 7, she went out in Newcastle with friends before returning home in the early hours of the following day.
There was a verbal argument and the woman ended up in the bath after being sick. Jennifer Coxon, defending, said: 'He grabbed her by the throat, lifting her out of the bath with both hands. She couldn't breathe at all and she was naked and incredibly vulnerable.' He then dragged her to the living room and grabbed her throat another time, squeezing tight with both hands. 'She believed she was going to die. He let go after five seconds.'
Turton left the property and the woman went to sleep. She woke up with a large bruise around the front of her neck and also had bruising to her arm and leg. During messages between the pair, Turton accepted strangling her and said he did it 'for the craic'.
Threats to kill over bed sheets
They remained together for a few weeks after that, but on February 22 he returned home and began arguing after he noticed she had changed the bed sheets and accused her of being unfaithful. He said he should have 'caved her head in' and she was lucky she got away with it. He went on to threaten to 'chop her up' and to 'hack her to death' and said it would be in the newspapers.
She had started recording his tirade of abuse and it was played in court. He was shouting and screaming at her and calling her abusive names repeatedly. Police were called by a neighbour who heard the disturbance and he was arrested.
Victim impact
In a victim impact statement, she said she was left struggling to swallow for around three weeks after being strangled. She said her close friends now have access to her live location because they are worried for her safety. 'My mental health has deteriorated significantly. I have days where I don't want to leave the house. I feel extremely anxious and depressed,' she said.
'Every day things that remind me of him can trigger overwhelming anxiety that feels crippling. I struggle to fall asleep and I have nightmares about what happened and often wake up thinking about it. It's consumed my thoughts and I just want to feel normal again. I'm waiting to start therapy.' She added that at the time of these events she was also pregnant, and that it had affected her employment and she no longer feels safe in her home.
Turton, who has eight previous convictions, pleaded guilty to the first strangulation on the basis he had lost his temper after she came home with friends and they were making a noise when he was due to work the next day and that he had gone to 'help her out of the bath'. In relation to the threats to kill, he pleaded guilty on the basis he had been away 'gigging' and arrived home late which angered her and he lost his temper.
Jason Smith, defending, said Turton is in employment and has been a rapper in the past. He added that he helps to care for his mother, and had a traumatic upbringing and has 'severe mental health problems associated with childhood trauma'. As well as the prison sentence, Turton was given a ten-year restraining order.
