Magistrate slams man's 'cowardly and brutal act' against former partner

Gerard Lethbridge lambasted a 32-year-old man who seriously assaulted the mother of his children during a plea hearing in Hamilton Magistrates Court on April 24, 2024.

The court heard the man, who cannot legally be named, and his then partner had an argument during September 2023 and he punched her to the left eye, causing her to fall to the ground.

He then stood over her and punched her multiple times.

Magistrate Lethbridge said he had seen a photograph of the black eye the victim suffered during the assault which he labelled "by any measure.. a cowardly and brutal act".

He said superior courts made clear the "shameful truth" that family violence was a leading cause of illness, disability and death among Victorian women aged between 15 and 44.

Recent crime statistics data shows the most common age of women affected by violence in the Southern Grampians was those aged between 35 and 44.

In the year to December 31, 2023, there were 222 women affected in that local government area alone.

Assault-related offences topped the number of victim reports received by Victoria Police in 12-month period, while breaching intervention orders and serious family violence assaults were in the top five most commonly recorded incidents.

The magistrate said the higher courts had a lot say about violence in a domestic relationship.

"Offending of this nature is too often perpetrated by men whose response to difficulties in a relationship are one of possessive violent rage," he said.

"It goes without saying that such a response to what is a common human situation is utterly unacceptable."

The magistrate said the sentences handed to perpetrators must convey the "unmistakable message that male partners have no right to subject their female partners to threat and violence".

But he said there were matters to take into consideration, including a perpetrator's guilty plea, evidence of remorse and history.

He said the only reason the man was not going to jail was because he didn't have a criminal record.

"If you ever assault another woman there is absolutely no question about it, you will go to jail," he said.

He said there was "absolutely no question" that a conviction would be recorded, which he accepted could impact the man's employment.

"Frankly it is utterly inexplicable how you could strike a woman multiple times to the face, who is the mother of your children," he said.

The man was convicted and placed on a two-year good behaviour bond.

He must undertake a men's behaviour change program and donate $5000 to the court fund, which assists people in need.

Victoria Police has warned the state's family violence perpetrators there's nowhere to hide - as a crackdown leads to a record number of offenders being arrested and brought before the courts each day.