A woman who was subjected to a brutal "campaign" of abuse at the hands of her violent partner says she is now looking forward to moving on with her life. "Cowardly" Leon Richmond was jailed for 28 months after his sickening treatment towards former partner Chloe Robinson.
After he falsely accused her of sending intimate pictures to another man, Richmond, 26, dragged Chloe by her hair, throttled her and stamped on her ribs during a disgusting attack. During another incident, he humiliatingly poured Coca-Cola on her.
Richmond's crimes were laid bare during a hearing in Minshull Street Court last Friday and Chloe, from Bolton, bravely made an appearance to watch her attacker being brought to justice. After pleading guilty to charges of coercive and controlling behaviour, and common assault, Richmond was jailed for a total of 28 months.
Speaking out after the hearing, Chloe, 27, has now encouraged others to speak and get help if they find themselves in abusive situations. She told the Manchester Evening News she is looking forward to ‘getting on with my life’ after the year-long wait.
She explained: “Go ahead and do it. It makes you a better person. Make sure you know about Clare’s Law. I can see the signs in everything [now]. With my friends, if they are going through it, I’m able to see it before it comes to them. I have got out through domestic violence workers.”
Clare's Law - officially called the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme - allows police forces to disclose information to a potential victim and have a duty to protect members of the public from domestic abuse. They can come from a police force's obligation to tell a potential victim about a partner, or a request from a member of the public.
His first attack on Chloe came when he ‘accused her of sending intimate pictures to another man, which she did not’, prosecutor David Farley said. He added: “He strangled her and called her a s**g. He said she ‘brings it on herself’. He also dragged her around by her hair.
“She went to the bathroom, where he was trying to choke her and he stamped on her ribs.” Defending Richmond, who appeared in Minshull Street Crown Court via video link from Forest Bank prison on Friday, was Rachel White. She said: “There appears to be some genuine remorse.
"The defendant appears to have matured somewhere. He has undertaken a course to address violence to address the issues he has with his temper.”
However, His Honour Judge Edwards told Richmond that his best mitigation was admitting his offences, describing his actions as ‘cowardly’. Sentencing Richmond, of Victoria Grove, Bolton, he said: “Leon Richmond, you are still only 26 and for a young man at that age to look at your record and to look at what you did to Chloe is alarming, to say the least. Your best mitigation is that you pleaded guilty and did not put Chloe through it.
One organisation in Greater Manchester that provides support for women in abusive relationships is the Pankhurst Trust, which incorporates Manchester Women’s Aid. It runs a local domestic abuse phone line on 0161 636 7525 and has an online service, too.
