A serial domestic abuser strangled his pregnant girlfriend less than two weeks after he was given a suspended sentence for previous assaults against her.
In February, Marc Berry walked free from prison, where he was being held on remand, after his victim wrote a letter to the court, describing him as 'one of the kindest people she’s ever met'. Just 10 days later, Berry grabbed the woman around the throat with both hands and squeezed until she ‘blacked out’ after accusing her of sleeping with someone else, while he had been in custody.
When she came back around, Berry was “stood over her, crying” and told her that he “thought he had killed her” because her “eyes rolled back in her head”, prosecution barrister Adam White told Bolton Crown Court. Later that day, the victim discovered that she was pregnant and has subsequently suffered a “bleed on the amniotic sac”, however Mr White told the court that there is no medical evidence linking this to the assault.
The following month, Berry smashed a mirror in the woman’s home in front of her nine-year-old daughter, following another argument. The schoolgirl then punched 35-year-old Berry to the ground, before he got up and punched a hole in the bedroom door.
In April, the victim was granted a non-molestation order by the Family Court, which stopped Berry from contacting her, visiting her street or her parents’ street, and going within 50 yards of her daughter’s school. Despite this, Berry was spotted outside the victim’s home on one occasion and drove past her parents’ home several times, while she sat in the front garden with her mum.
Berry, of Kintore Walk, Collyhurst, then bombarded the victim with calls from a withheld number. He called her so many times that she had to turn her phone off to avoid him, the court heard.
In a victim personal statement, the woman said that she has had to move home in a bid to avoid Berry and is not “sleeping or eating properly” since the incidents.
Berry pleaded guilty to common assault, breach of a non-molestation order, breach of a restraining order, and criminal damage. He also admitted to breaching his two-year suspended sentence.
Berry, who has 11 convictions for 26 offences, including a history of harassment and violence against previous partners, was defended by Dan Gaskell. Mr Gaskell told the court that Berry works in traffic management.
“It is perhaps frustrating and somewhat disappointing that a man who is able to hold down a good job simply cannot manage his emotions when difficulties arise in domestic situations,” Mr Gaskell said.
The Honorary Recorder of Bolton Judge Martin Walsh described Berry’s breaches as “flagrant” and “persistent”, as he jailed him for three years. He also imposed a restraining order to stop Berry from contacting the victim and her family for an indefinite period of time.
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