Kole Stratford was sentenced to prison in the Nelson District Court on a representative charge of injuring with intent to injure, and drugs charges. Photo \/ Tracy Neal<\/p>\n
She agreed with the Crown that the remorse he now showed was not genuine.<\/p>\n
\u201cRemorse begins with proper acknowledgment of what one has done,\u201d Crown prosecutor Sophie O\u2019Donoghue said.<\/p>\n
She said Stratford, who had a history of family violence<\/a>, posed an ongoing risk to an intimate partner.<\/p>\n A sign that he had not taken responsibility for his actions was that he had shifted the blame to others, O\u2019Donoghue said.<\/p>\n Judge Rielly said the contents of Stratford\u2019s apology letter were at odds with what he had told a probation officer<\/a>, including that he denied what happened and blamed the victim.<\/p>\n She said his letters read the way the letters of someone now incarcerated might, displaying an increased level of insight.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are not genuine expressions of remorse,\u201d she told Stratford, who appeared for sentencing via video link from prison, where he was placed on remand after breaching earlier bail conditions.<\/p>\n Stratford initially faced more serious charges but eventually pleaded guilty to a reduced, representative charge of assault with intent to injure<\/a> from March last year, and charges from August this year of possession of cannabis and ketamine.<\/p>\n In the early hours of March 14 last year, the victim was visiting Stratford\u2019s home.<\/p>\n The summary of facts said both were under the influence of alcohol and drugs<\/a> when they began to argue.<\/p>\n The woman took Stratford\u2019s glass meth pipe and intended to smash it.<\/p>\n He then head-butted her and she fell to the ground, but got up and continued to argue with him.<\/p>\n She then got the keys to a vehicle and went outside but as she got into the car, he grabbed her left hand and slammed it in the door.<\/p>\n Stratford got his meth pipe and went back inside. <\/p>\n As the victim crouched beside the car with her arms wrapped around her knees, Stratford came back and wearing steel-capped boots, kicked her in the ribs.<\/p>\n She was able to call the police for help. They arrived to find her hiding behind a vehicle in a shed.<\/p>\n \u2018A state of survival mode\u2019<\/p>\n