A sheriff has jailed an Inverness domestic abuser for 18 months after a brutal biting attack on his estranged wife.
Lewis Swenson – who has previous convictions for domestic offences and has twice completed a programme for men who are violent towards their partners – assaulted his ex in an Inverness pub.
When his victim tried to push him away with her hand, Swenson, 27, took hold of her finger with his teeth and refused to let go.
The woman – who Inverness Sheriff Court was told is “terrified” of her former husband – has been left permanently scarred.
91 missed calls
At an earlier hearing, the court was told of an acrimonious split between the couple, which boiled over when the pair met in Lauder’s Bar last year.
Swenson, of Assynt Road, Inverness, encountered his ex in the early hours of August 19 – the day after she received 91 missed calls from an unknown number.
The court heard that Swenson – who admitted assault to injury, permanent disfigurement and permanent impairment – went over to her table where she was with friends.
Fiscal depute Susan Love said: “She suspected he was responsible for the calls and put her hand up to push him away.
“She was shouting and wagging her finger in his face and he bit down on it hard.
“He did not release his grip and made an attempt to walk away with the finger still in his mouth.”
A witness intervened and freed Mrs Swenson’s finger before staff ejected her husband.
Past history of domestic abuse
Ms Love added: “She stated to police that she was terrified of him and still suffers pain in her finger which was left with a bite mark.”
Defence solicitor Natalie Paterson revealed Swenson’s past history of domestic offending when he appeared for sentence at Inverness Sheriff Court.
She told the court that one of the domestic abuse programmes he was ordered to take “was completed after the commission of this offence”.
Sheriff Ian Cruickshank read Swenson’s wife’s victim impact statement and noted: “It is clear that she is terrified of you.”
He added that Mrs Swenson was fearful of new relationships and going out after the incident.
“This was an assault without any provocation,” he said. “It was very unpleasant and an unjustified course of action. Your record appears to have domestic elements.”
As well as the 18-month jail term, he also imposed an 18-month long non-harassment order to protect Mrs Swenson, but allowed third-party involvement to resolve child welfare matters.
