A serial abuser walked free from custody after being sentenced for his latest family violence crimes.
Two weeks later, he would viciously attack the mother of his infant child by choking and threatening to kill her.
"You had her life in your hands," Acting Justice Anthony Hopkins told the 22-year-old man on Thursday.
"In that moment, you had the capacity to kill her."
The ACT Supreme Court judge cited the abuser's prolific criminal history, including 10 convictions for contravening a family violence order, while refusing his bid for a community-based sentence.
Instead of being granted a drug and alcohol treatment order, the man was handed a three-year jail term and will serve at least 14 months of that sentence behind bars.
He previously admitted to aggravated threatening to kill, choking and impersonating a police officer.
But it's the family violence order taken out against the man, which he admitted breaching three times and attempting to breach twice, that legally prevents The Canberra Times from naming him.
In November last year, magistrate Jane Campbell said releasing the man back into the community on bail, after he told his partner he hoped her and their child would die, was too risky.
"I consider the likelihood of the defendant endangering the safety of the complainant and his child is too high," Ms Campbell said at the time.
She was right.
But the man was eventually released on January 12 of this year after being sentenced and deemed to have spent enough time in custody.
On January 24, while serving multiple good behaviour orders, he visited his partner. At about 1am, he drunkenly barged into her bedroom, jumped on top of her and grabbed her throat.
"I'm going to kill you, you fat slut. I don't want our son," he said while choking the victim and, at one point, preventing her from breathing for 15 seconds.
He then repeated those threatening words while holding a knife to the woman's throat, before chasing her outside her home as she fled. The victim was "shaking and crying" when police eventually found her.
"You are a strong man, she was weaker than you and in a vulnerable position," the judge said on Thursday.
"I have no doubt [the victim] feared she might die."
The man also admitted to numerous times deceptively contacting or attempting to contact his partner from Canberra's jail.
Acting Justice Hopkins said the abuser made calls to a bank and a health service claiming to have dementia and asking to be transferred to his support worker, being the victim.
The judge described one conversation the pair then had as "deeply distressing".
He also said the recorded phone calls involved the man exercising coercive control, being abusive and, on one occasion, asking his partner to "record herself on a daily basis while you're in custody".
Acting Justice Hopkins said the man's moral culpability was reduced due to childhood trauma and said his letter to the court made clear he was ashamed of his actions.
However, the judge also said the abuser had shown little remorse or insight into his offending beyond the letter and had threatened prison staff while in custody.
"I'm sure you'll be disappointed I did not make an order for you," Acting Justice Hopkins said, encouraging the man to engage with services in prison.
"I wish you luck."
- Support is available for those who may be distressed. Phone Lifeline 13 11 14; 1800-RESPECT 1800 737 732; ACT Domestic Violence Crisis Service 6280 0900.
