A MAN who assaulted his ex-partner in Bromsgrove while breaching a Domestic Violence Prevention Order has been jailed for a total of 23 weeks.

Duncan Read, aged 51, care of an address at Cobnall Road, Catshill, Bromsgrove, appeared before Redditch Magistrates Court on Monday, April 30, when he admitted assaulting his ex-partner and criminal damage to property at her home on the same occasion, April 14.

He was jailed for 17 weeks for the assault and received no separate penalty for the criminal damage. Read had previously been jailed for six weeks by the same court on April 16 when he admitted breaching the terms of a Domestic Violence Prevention Order (DVPO) issued against him by using violence, attending a prohibited address, and intimidating and having direct contact with the victim. The breaches also took place on April 14.

The DVPO was issued by magistrates on April 2, 2012, after an application by police who were concerned for the victim's welfare following a series of incidents which had escalated in recent years.

After Monday's sentencing Detective Inspector Vikki Reay from West Mercia Police's Public Protection Unit at Bromsgrove said: "The Domestic Violence Prevention Order in this case demonstrates the need for some protective measures for those victims of domestic abuse in addition to the criminal justice process.

"Often victims see the criminal justice process as too daunting to support, given the cycle of abuse within the home. The civil order (DVPO) supports police action by removing the offender from the home and allowing the victim of crime the breathing space necessary to seek and receive the support they need. "On this occasion, the court's decision to give a custodial sentence for a breach of the order sends a clear message to victims that their concerns are taken seriously and a message to offenders that they must respect the decision of the court when a DVPO is issued.

"I hope that victims of domestic violence will see this and it will encourage them to report abuse in the home, to the police or to Independent Domestic Violence Advocates, so that we can work together to address this insidious crime."