A soon-to-be father from Dubbo who assaulted his pregnant partner on two separate occasions and intimidated her will have a jail sentence hanging over him for 12 months.
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The 21-year-old punched his partner in the head and then two months later while on bail told her he would chop off her head with an axe and pushed her.
He pleaded guilty in Dubbo Local Court to two counts of common assault, contravening an apprehended violence order (AVO), and intimidation with intent to cause fear of harm.
Magistrate Andrew Eckhold sentenced the man to a 12-month term of imprisonment for intimidation, suspended on the condition he enter into a good behaviour bond.
The man was also sentenced to a nine-month suspended jail sentence for the first common assault and a six-month suspended jail sentence for contravening the AVO.
The magistrate imposed a two-year good behaviour bond for the second common assault.
"Words fail me," he said when sentencing the man.
"Your partner was eight weeks pregnant and you were punching her in the head.
". . . Threatening her with an axe.
"What sort of start are you giving your child."
In February during a visit to the man's family in another city the couple argued.
About 12.30am the 21-year-old told his partner who was eight weeks pregnant to leave and when she did, he followed her, told her to go back to the house and punched her in the right cheek bone, court documents show.
The man punched the victim in the head when she was lying down and a short time later began throwing punches at her head.
In May the victim told the accused she wanted to end the relationship due to him refusing to stop using drugs, court documents show.
He told her he would "give the police a reason" to go there, and would "chop your f--ing head off with the axe" - a tomahawk was in a cupboard in the room, the documents show.
He used his foot to push her in the back causing her to fall forward from where she was sitting.
The defence acknowledged the victim's vulnerability in being pregnant and the breach of the AVO were aggravating features of the offences, but noted his partner was present in the court.
The solicitor said her instructions were on the two occasions the man had used amphetamines and that a pre-sentence report showed he had made a commitment not to use the illicit substance again.
The magistrate told the 21-year-old he had to start taking responsibility as a man not only for his partner but also because he was about to become a father.
"That's your job to protect your child," Mr Eckhold said.
