An Angus domestic abuser has been jailed for six months for putting his girlfriend through a brutal ordeal over a spilt cup of juice.
In the culmination of an ‘intense’ 18-month relationship, Kevin McCallum grabbed his partner by the throat, forced her to the ground and pulled her phone away as she tried to make a 999 call to raise the alarm.
The victim did eventually manage to get through to police, but was so traumatised by the attack that she was unable to speak to officers to report what was happening in the Forfar home they shared.
McCallum, of Glenclova Terrace, Forfar, appeared from custody for sentence at the town’s sheriff court on Thursday having previously admitted the December 6 assault in which he seized the woman by the throat, restricting her breathing, seized her shoulders and forced her to the ground.
He also admitted behaving in a threatening manner and earlier breaching a bail condition by making contact with the woman.
Depute fiscal Hannah Kennedy said the 27-year-old victim had been in a relationship with McCallum for some 18 months before the attack, although there was a history of domestic violence against her by the accused.
”Around 10pm the complainer was in the bedroom watching TV. She got up to make herself a cup of tea and gave the accused a glass of juice which he had asked for,” said the fiscal.
”Sometime later the accused had spilt some of the juice on the bed covers. This annoyed him and he began to accuse the complainer of over-filling the glass.”
The court heard that for her own safety the girlfriend decided to get dressed and go to her mother’s house, but McCallum followed her into the living-room and launched the attack, seizing her by the throat.
”She was finding it hard to breathe and the complainer was extremely distressed,” the fiscal added.
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The victim then tried to phone the police but McCallum grabbed the handset away, and pulled her away from a window she also tried to reach.
”She did manage to phone the police but the call was silent she was so scared she couldn’t actually speak,” the fiscal continued.
Neighbours who heard the argument called the police and McCallum was arrested. Officers then discovered that on his way to Arbroath police station he had sent a text to his partner stating: ”I know you don’t really want to get me done and I know you really love me.”
The fiscal said: ”That message was controlling in the context of domestic abuse.”
Defence agent Nick Markowski said his client wanted to publicly apologise for the assault.
”It appears from his record and reports that anger management is the issue unusually alcohol is not a factor at all.
”The relationship they had seems to have been fairly intense. In the period on remand he has been able to build some bridges with his own family but he accepts entirely that the relationship is at an end.
”A civil court action has been raised for an interdict and Mr McCallum has instructed us not to impose that.”
Mr Markowski added: ”He is realistic in regard to the outcome today.”
Jailing McCallum for four months and 60 days on the charges he faced, Sheriff Kevin Veal said: ”Having regard to the previous record of similar offences, one of which was visited with imprisonment, this matter has to be regarded as an altogether more serious situation.
”I think Mr McCallum needs managed, and managed quite tightly, and that can only be done within the parameters of a probation order.”
A breach of probation offence which McCallum also admitted was continued until May 24 to allow a further probation order to be imposed at that time.