A dressing gown clad man "lunged" at his partner and injured her with a screwdriver during an argument about another woman.
Balbinder Singh was kicked out of his then-partner's home after she heard another woman call him "babe" while he was on the phone in the bath on October 17, 2020. The 29-year-old then travelled to a street in South Shields in order to prevent his then-partner from confronting the woman he had been on the phone to.
But after arriving at the street, Singh, who was wearing a dressing gown, "lashed out" with a screwdriver that he'd taken from his then-partner and caused an injury to her arm. He was later arrested.
On Wednesday, Singh appeared at Newcastle's Moot Hall to be sentenced for possession of a bladed article and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. He pleaded guilty to the charges at a previous hearing.
Liam O'Brien said the victim in the matter was Singh's then-partner and that he had pleaded guilty on the basis that he travelled to a street in South Shields in order to prevent her from confronting a "female acquaintance". He said: "He said he was concerned there would be an argument which would result in violence."
Mr O'Brien added: "His concerns stemmed from when he had been at the home of his then-partner and while in the bath received a call from the woman. He put the call on speaker and his then-partner heard the conversation and the word 'babe' was used. His partner then threw him out of the house without him being dressed. After leaving, the defendant spoke with his then-partner on the phone and she said she was on her way to a street in South Shields to confront the woman. He said he disarmed her with a screwdriver and kept it."
The court heard that when Singh turned up to the street, a "further confrontation" ensued and he "lashed out" with the screwdriver, injuring his then-partner's arm. Mr O'Brien said: "The defendant accepts he had no justification for continuing to have the screwdriver with him and accepts his actions were unlawful."
A witness to the incident said Singh, of Saint Jude's Terrace, South Shields, "emerged from his vehicle" while dressed in a dressing gown and approached the victim before he "lunged at her with a screwdriver". Singh was then ushered away by his mother, who had travelled to the scene with him, and the screwdriver was disposed of down a drain.
The court heard Singh was "lightly convicted" and had been given a conditional discharge in 2015 for battery.
Nick Lane, defending, said: "There's very little I would wish to say about the facts, they speak for themselves. He is deeply ashamed of his behaviour. The screwdriver was not a weapon he took with him, he took it from his former partner, and it was used against her." Mr Lane added Singh was "lightly convicted".
Sentencing Singh, Judge Amanda Rippon said his behaviour was "extremely dangerous and foolish" and handed him a 20 month prison sentence, suspended for two years. He must complete 60 rehabilitation days and 100 hours unpaid work. He will also have to complete a Building Better Relationships programme.
