A Dunedin man attacked his partner and ripped a family-harm alarm from the wall during his rampage, a court has heard.
Daniel Robert Sinclair, 42, appeared in the Dunedin District Court last week after admitting a slew of charges across two incidents.
In a statement, the defendant’s partner said the family had been ‘‘walking on eggshells’’ around the man because of his erratic behaviour.
‘‘She speaks of fear, frustration, stress, exhaustion, and ultimately that’s down to you,’’ Judge David Robinson told Sinclair.
He and the victim argued on November 3, resulting in him cornering her in the kitchen.
When she pushed the family-harm alarm, which immediately alerted police to her plight, the defendant pulled it out of the wall and smashed it on the floor.
Sinclair’s young son intervened and he pushed the boy out of the way, causing him to hit his head on a cupboard.
After being forced to the floor, his partner escaped to a side room to call police.
Once Sinclair became aware of the call, he took the phone and slammed it down, smashing the screen, the court heard.
Charges were laid and the defendant was granted bail on strict conditions he refrain from contact with his partner.
A month after the first incident, however, he was back at the victim’s home and another argument erupted.
Sinclair made overt threats of violence and police arrived as the woman was loading the children into the car to make their escape.
When the defendant was told he would be placed under arrest, he was immediately defiant.
‘‘F … this,’’ Sinclair said as he walked towards the door.
Officers at the scene wrestled the defendant to the floor but he refused to allow his hands to be cuffed, hiding them under his body.
A second police unit arrived to force his compliance.
As a constable tried to drag Sinclair’s arms out, the man bit him on the wrist.
The court heard the chomp was so forceful it broke the skin, and the officer later needed a course of antibiotics when the wound became infected.
Sinclair explained he ‘‘snapped’’ because of his PTSD.
Judge Robinson said the defendant had acknowledged some of the blame but raised substance abuse and other issues which had contributed to his state.
‘‘You need to accept full responsibility for what you did,’’ the judge said.
‘‘Regardless of your background, you made a series of decisions to put your family in harm’s way.’’
The court heard there had been domestic-violence callouts to the family home since 2023.
‘‘I get really worried, really concerned for victims, when I see family harm alarms damaged and phones broken,’’ Judge Robinson said.
‘‘That’s to stop them being able to call for help. That’s actions deliberately by you to keep them vulnerable and keep them under your control.’’
Sinclair was jailed for seven months but his release would be imminent because of the time he had spent in custody.
A protection order was issued in favour of his partner.