By John Hawkins

A COUPLE'S bickering about the wife having to drive her husband 45 miles to work every morning led to violence and the breakup of their marriage, a court heard on Friday.

Early in the morning after drinking the previous night, the man assaulted his wife in the kitchen of their Stroud home, Gloucester Crown Court was told.

The woman alleged that her husband, who is in his late 30s, put her in a headlock and lifted her off the ground so she could not breathe.

Then as she tried to leave through the kitchen door he slammed it on her arm, she said.

The man had been convicted by magistrates of assaulting his wife on May 29 this year but he appealed to the crown court against the conviction, saying he had not done anything physical to her at all.

However, after hearing evidence from the woman the judge and two JPs upheld the conviction.

They found that the man had slammed the door on her but, they said, they were not sure whether the headlock incident had happened as described.

Dismissing the appeal, the court ordered the man, who no longer lives in Stroud, to pay £525 costs.

The sentence he received from the magistrates - an 18 months community order with rehab and programme requirements and 80 hours unpaid work - will stand.

The court also upheld a restraining order requiring the man not to contact his wife in any way.

The court had heard that the man worked in Oxfordshire and as he was not driving at the time his wife was running him to work every morning.

They had to get up at 5.30am and on the day of the offence they had set off from home at 5.50am.

However, both told the court they were arguing that morning after having drunk alcohol the night before. They had only had two and a half hours sleep.

As they drove out of Stroud they were still arguing and they turned back at the man’s behest because he felt he was too drunk to work and she was not safe to drive.

Back at home they had a row in the kitchen during which he assaulted her, the court was told.

In evidence the woman, who gave evidence via TV link, said she was very frightened by her husband's violence and decided that was the end of their relationship.

The man told the court that when they got back to the house "I was shouting at her and calling her names. I was also pleading with her. But it didn't work.

“She was part stressed and part drunk. But there was no physical attack at all. I did not put her in a headlock. I made no physical attack on her whatsoever."

  • The SNJ has not identified the defendant or the victim involved in this case to protect children involved.