A bodybuilder has been jailed for launching a brutal baseball bat attack on his partner after she asked him for a contribution to their anniversary meal.
Luke Artis, 21, lashed out at Tina Gillian in her bedroom – breaking her elbow and finger, and giving her a black eye and bruising to her legs, ribs and back.
Bradford Crown Court heard how Ms Gillian asked Artis if he was going to contribute to the meal and he replied: ‘You’re only bothered about money.’
Artis had drunk approximately eight pints on the night and had taken painkillers when he retrieved the baseball bat had hit his 41-year-old girlfriend around the head and body.
Prosecutor Robert Galley said Ms Gillian required five stitches following the blow to the head and was hit five times around the body. She was forced to curl up into ball to protect herself as the attack continued.
The court heard that Ms Gillian of Queensbury, West Yorkshire needed her elbow wired and suffered from sleepless nights, anxiety and flashbacks following her ordeal.
In a victim impact statement to the court, Ms Gililan siad she felt like a ‘shell of her former self’.
Artis told police that he had ‘flipped’ and described the incident as ‘a flash of rage’.
He pleaded guilty to one count of causing wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
Defence solicitor Nadim Bashir said before the incident there had been no previous hint of violence and said the relationship had its ups and downs.
He said the attack was a result of a sudden loss of control which caused ‘the red mist’ to descend on his client.
Mr Bashir said Artis acknowledged that it was Ms Gillian’s request for money towards their anniversary meal was the catalyst for the violent outburst. He said accepted he was facing a lengthy prison sentence following the attack.
Judge Jonathan Rose jailed Artis for six years and eight months and placed a lifetime restraining order on the bodybuilder prohibiting him from contacting Ms Gillian again.
Judge Rose dismissed any suggestion that Ms Gillian bore any responsibility for the attack and rejected that the victim had broken her own arm after Artis had left the house.
He said: ‘For you to suggest after pleading guilty that the victim of this brutal crime caused one of the most serious injuries herself is truly unforgivable and demonstrates, far from you being remorseful for what you have done, you are more concerned with the outcome for yourself.’
The judge accepted that Miss Gillian may have been kicking out at Artis as he continued the attack, but he added: ‘Perhaps she was (kicking you). So desperate was she to save her own life because what you did that night could so easily have killed her.
‘This court will never accept the use of violence by a man against a woman in any way, shape or form. That is the starting point.
‘The use of a weapon against a woman takes this into a whole different league. You know that this was, putting it very shortly, unprovoked, vicious, brutal, sustained and wholly without a shred of justification whatsoever There is no blame on her. There is only blame on you.’
Inspector Pam Pills of Bradford District Safeguarding Unit praised Ms Gilliam for reporting the crime.
She said: ‘Artis viciously assaulted his victim, causing a number of serious injuries to her which required hospital treatment.
‘We would like to thank the victim for her courage in coming forward, and we hope the sentence passed down today will help to give her some comfort.
‘We would also like to encourage those suffering from domestic abuse to come forward and report it to the police, either by calling 101 or to Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111. All reports will be investigated sensitively and thoroughly.’
