A woman suffered multiple skull and facial fractures after her boyfriend kicked her in the head during a hotel-room attack in Newcastle. The assault, fuelled by alcohol and laughing gas, followed false accusations of flirting.
Attack details
Benjamin Goddard, 23, of Richmond Park Rise, Sheffield, had been out with his then-partner and another couple in Newcastle city centre on May 3. After misreading an interaction between his partner and her friend's boyfriend, he pushed her. The couple returned to their room at a Travelodge, where he pushed her again. She curled into a ball on the floor, and he kicked her in the head.
Newcastle Crown Court heard the victim saw a white light and believes she was knocked unconscious. She was hospitalised with both eyes swollen shut, multiple skull and facial fractures, air inside her skull, and a probable spinal fluid leak.
Victim impact
In a victim impact statement, the woman said: "I'm in total shock following this incident. I feel completely let down by Ben I can't believe he has assaulted me in this way." She added that her family had supported Goddard after his release from prison for drug dealing, saying: "We tried to help him turn his life around. He has let my parents down who have done so much to support and help him. He was treated like a son, everyone just wanted to help him."
She described Goddard as her "best friend" and said: "I'm so hurt he has attacked me in this way. It's utterly heart-breaking." She added: "My injuries are life-changing and I don't think I will mentally recover from this for a long time. I feel like this is a nightmare."
Sentencing
Goddard, who has 14 previous convictions and was jailed for five years in February 2024 for supplying crack cocaine and heroin, had been released early on licence. He pleaded guilty to inflicting GBH and was jailed for two years by Recorder Mark Giuliani, who said he is likely to serve nine-and-a-half months in prison.
Penny Hall, defending, said he had not been violent to the victim previously and added: "In the cold light of day he can't believe he behaved in this way. He is remorseful. He has clearly destroyed a good relationship he had with his now ex partner."
