Coalburn man jailed for beating up pregnant partner

Attack was outside Coalburn Primary School

Gary Young appeared at Lanark Sheriff Court last Thursday for deferred sentence, having earlier admitted assaulting his partner Marie Paterson by repeatedly punching her to the head and body and pushing her to the ground, to her injury, outside Coalburn Primary School.

The 33-year-old, of Midfield Road, Coalburn, further admitted that, later on the same day, at his home, he also assaulted a seven-year-old girl and a nine-year-old boy.

Depute fiscal Ziad Hassan told the court that Young and Ms Paterson had been in a relationship for 14 years and, on the day of the assault, she was six and a half months pregnant with their child.

At about 3.15pm, the two were walking home when an argument blew up, leading Young to repeatedly punch her before walking off, leaving her hurt and lying on the pavement.

When she’d recovered enough to return home, she found Young already there.

He then assaulted two children within the house, the girl by holding her down on a bed and placing his hands on her neck and the boy by seizing his clothing and placing his hands on his neck and compressing it.

The solicitor acting for Young, David Kinloch, told the court that Young had been in custody for the offence since December 28 last year.

Ms Paterson had not visited Young in prison during that time, but she had made daily telephone contact, and Mr Kinloch said: “There is hope that they will reconcile.”

He added that Young had difficulties with drink in the past but planned to seek help with that problem if given a non-custodial sentence.

However, sheriff Nikola Stewart said that, after studying Young’s criminal record, she noted that there were “seven domestic matters involving this lady”.

She told him: “This is one of the nastiest matters to come before me for some time.

“You are a thug who is a danger to his family.

“Jail is the only place for someone who treats another human being with such contempt.”

She jailed Young for nine months and ordered him not to harass Ms Paterson for two years.