Brian Robinson jailed for three years after assaulting former partner

Brian Robinson has been jailed for three years after a jury found him guilty of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, intentional strangulation and dangerous driving following an attack on his then partner in Hartlepool. He was also disqualified from driving for 12 months and made subject to a 15-year restraining order.

The court heard that Robinson and the woman had been together for about five months when the incident happened on 2 November 2023. Prosecutor Uzma Khan said he had collected her from Stockton town centre around midnight and driven to her home in Hartlepool.

An argument began after Robinson took the woman’s phone while she was messaging a friend. The woman tried to calm him by pouring him a glass of vodka, but he knocked it from her hand, breaking the glass and spilling the drink over her, the court was told.

Khan said Robinson held the woman by the throat for between 10 and 20 seconds. She managed to push him away and tried to flee, but he grabbed her arm and dragged her back. He then stabbed her in the face four times with a kitchen knife, the court heard, making remarks that no one would want her or look at her afterwards.

The woman escaped the house and hid behind a bush, where she called 999. Robinson locked the home and drove past her before turning around and chasing her along the street. She ran towards a vehicle that she realised was a police car and alerted the officers. They took her to hospital, while Robinson drove away.

Police later saw him on the A689. He failed to stop when officers activated their lights and sirens, and reached speeds of 120mph on the A19 during the pursuit, the court heard. He was caught after mounting a grass verge on the A689 at Newton Bewley. Officers apprehended him as he tried to reverse.

Robinson denied the charges but was convicted by a jury in June. Khan said he had told officers that the woman had “stabbed herself” and that he had not seen police until shortly before his arrest. He had been held on remand since his conviction.

In a victim personal statement, the woman said the experience had changed her life. She described the outgoing person she had been as feeling like a stranger and said she remained anxious and felt compelled to look over her shoulder. She said the stress of the case was continuing.

Judge Jonathan Carroll said it was “nothing more than good fortune” that the woman had not suffered very serious facial injuries. He said the jury had rejected Robinson’s lies and his “victim-blaming”, adding that he appeared to regard everyone else as at fault.

The court heard Robinson had 12 previous convictions for 18 offences, including domestic violence-related offending in 2005. His barrister, Caoimhe Bicknell, said he had found stability, was now married and his health had declined.

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