The Angus victim of a nasty domestic assault fears a six-month non-harassment order will not be enough protection to keep her safe from her tormentor.
Jamie Urquhart was handed a prison sentence last month after pulling the woman into a hot radiator after she dumped him on Christmas Day.
He had been remanded since Boxing Day and admitted at Forfar Sheriff Court injuring his former partner.
The woman said she suffered continued abuse from the habitual domestic offender while he was in jail, as he continued to write unwanted letters to her from behind bars.
Special bail conditions were put in place to protect her.
The court heard Urquhart held onto his victim’s jumper as they went downstairs, then pulled her over the arm of a sofa, causing her to fall into a heater.
As the attack began, she had been on the phone and pleaded with the person on the other end of the line to call police.
Urquhart, from Forfar, who was jailed for 11 months in 2020 after attacking a different ex with a jewellery box, was handed a backdated prison sentence of 54 days.
It meant as soon as his hearing concluded, he was released from prison, with an unexpired portion hanging over his head if he re-offends.
Unimpressed with system
Urquhart’s victim, who asked not to be named, said: “Half the things have not even been mentioned.
“I had to get an X-ray on my hand.
“The bruises weren’t just little. I had a burst lip.
“I had to go to hospital the next day. My hand was swollen.
“I would have given him a little bit more more of a sentence – he only got 54 days.”
In relation to the non-harassment order, the woman said: “That’s ridiculous as well, it should be a lot longer.
“There were previous bail conditions in place.
“I am not impressed at all with the whole system.
“At least there could have been a year or two year’s non-harassment order, not just six months.
“He breached bail already.
“If he’s breached it once, he’ll breach it again.”
Pestered from prison
The woman explained Urquhart, 32, sent multiple letters to her during his month on remand and she had to get bosses at HMP Perth to intervene.
She added: “He was bombarding me with letters from prison.
“I had to hand in six letters I had received from him to the procurator fiscal.
“There wasn’t anything threatening.
“The police phoned the prison and stated nothing else was to get sent.
“I was still receiving them. I phoned the prison myself.
“It turns out he’d stopped putting my name on the envelopes.”
A Scottish Prison Service spokesperson: “While we cannot comment on individual cases, we work hard to manage individuals in a way which does not negatively impact on people in the community.
“This includes the ability to monitor and record phone calls and the names and addresses on correspondence.”
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