Sentence for violent offences against domestic partner increased on appeal due to seriousness and previous offending

The Court of Appeal set aside a sentence imposed by the Circuit Court on a defendant for offences including threats to kill and assault causing harm against a former domestic partner, finding the original sentence unduly lenient. The Circuit Court had imposed a partially suspended consecutive sentence based on the 'assault causing harm' count, adopting its maximum sentence as the starting point and reducing it by 30% for mitigating factors, which the appellate court found inappropriate given the gravity and persistence of the offending, the defendant's previous convictions, and the lack of genuine remorse. The Court of Appeal resentenced the defendant to concurrent five-year terms of imprisonment for each count, consecutive to his existing sentence, leaving no portion suspended, to properly reflect the serious totality of the offences, their context of domestic violence, and the statutory requirements for offending while on bail. The appellate court emphasised that the cumulative offending, the escalation and duration of violence, and the inadequacy of earlier mitigation warranted a significantly longer custodial term. The outcome increases the length of imprisonment and underscores the judiciary’s approach to repeated and aggravated domestic violence, especially when committed during bail.