A Wagga judge has thrown out the appeal of a man who assaulted his partner on five occasions, one falling on Valentines Day.
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Wayne Anthony Firebrace, 40, brought his appeal to Wagga District Court on Thursday after he was sentenced to 12 months’ jail in June on five counts of common assault.
Firebrace and his then girlfriend had been in a relationship for about two months when he became aggressive and punched her in the legs during the first incident this February.
On another occasion, he started kicking the victim all over her body and bent her left wrist before another person in the house intervened and stopped him.
Then, on Valentine’s Day, he punched her in the mouth after she woke him to tell him his cousin had come to visit the house.
His lawyer, Nico Rump, argued for an earlier release so his client could participate in a residential rehabilitation program.
“It’s alcohol and drugs that are the main issues that lead to his offending,” Mr Rump said.
“He’s made numerous inquiries while he’s been in custody trying to get into rehabilitation, and he’s been put on the wait list for Calvary.”
However, Judge Gordon Lerve ultimately rejected Firebrace’s appeal, which he said was “utterly lacking in merit”.
"Those assaults are individually very serious, and it shows, of course, conduct where the appellant engaged in gratuitous violence towards the victim, who was his domestic partner," Judge Lerve said.
“Quite frankly, it’s also in the interest of this community for this court to send messages of general deterrence for matters of domestic violence, isn’t it?"
Firebrace’s non-parole period of seven months will expire on October 24 this year, at which point he will be released with 11 months of his good behaviour bond remaining.
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