An eye opening catalogue of (repeated) violent behavior that results in a suspended sentence :

She said it was about 7.40pm on November 25 when Grubb, who was wielding a baseball bat and Mr Shaw arrived at Miss Myers’ flat.

Miss Evans said Grubb had drunk 12 cans of Strongbow and started a bottle of vodka.

Miss Myers refused to let them in and went to the communal door to talk to them.

Grubb barged past her, kicked the front door of her flat in and went up to her bathroom put the plug in the basin and turned on the taps flooding the bathroom.

Next he went into the kitchen and wrenched out the U-bend from the kitchen sink and again turned on the taps.

Then he threw a glass at Miss Myers, which hit her in the mouth.

Miss Evans said he smashed three windows and pushed Miss Myers to the floor before raining blows down on her head.

Grubb admitted criminal damage and common assault.

I would have thought that criminal damage and assault would lead to some custodial sentence but I appear to have missed the point completely :

Judge Jackie Davies sentenced him to a six-month jail term, suspended for 12 months and ordering him to take part in a binge-drinking course and said: “You treated her with utter contempt. You invaded her home.

The last thing he needs is a binge drinking course :

James Gould, defending Grubb, of Fitzwilliam Street, Swinton, said he had an “unattractive antecedent history of consistent and persistent low level offending.”

He added: “He suffered a bereavement and this has been the catalyst for him abusing alcohol for years and years and years.

“It’s alcohol that has blighted his life for years now and that’s the explanation for the offending.”

It was all the fault of the bottle then obviously.

What do people actually have to do to get locked up these days?