Drunk tipped used cat litter tray on woman in ‘gratuitous degradation’

Kevin Massey also struck his then-partner with the tray, slapped her on the leg and hit her to the face in an unnecessary domestic attack.

The 52-year-old has now been sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court, having originally been charged with intentional strangulation, assault by beating and harassment without violence.

However, on the day of his trial, after disputing strangulation, he admitted an alternate count of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Prosecuting in the case, Kevin Liston told the court that the defendant and victim had been in a relationship for around three years.

In the early hours of February 11 this year, Cheshire Police received a 999 call from the victim reporting that the defendant had ‘beaten her up’ before leaving her Orford home.

She described them being together in the property, having both been drinking, when she challenged him about his level of intoxication and the amount of vodka he had consumed.

This led to him violently attacking her in her own home, Mr Liston said.

Massey admitted that he grabbed the victim by her dressing gown, forcefully pushed her onto the couch and put pressure on her chest area, causing injury.

He also accepts that he slapped her once to the leg, causing injury, and struck a single blow to her face, again causing injury to her eye.

What is more, Massey picked up a cat litter tray and proceeded to tip the contents – which included cat waste – onto her, and then struck her three times with the tray.

He denied applying pressure and causing her a loss of breath which would constitute strangulation, with that charge to lie on his file.

Massey was arrested and taken into police custody, before being released on bail on February 12 with strict conditions not to contact her or to approach her home.

However, he showed a ‘complete disregard’ for this as he began to ‘bombard’ her with phone calls just three minutes from his release.

Then, 33 minutes after his release, he attended outside her home address, and on two occasions, the addresses of members of her family.

He was arrested again that same day and subsequently charged.

Massey was sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court

The court heard that the victim did prepare two impact statements, but neither were read out in open court.

Mr Lister confirmed that Massey has one previous conviction for one offence – a relevant one though in a domestic context of making threats to kill a former partner in 2015.

He also received a police caution for battery in 2012.

Mr Lister described the victim as ‘vulnerable’ due to health conditions and described the assault as a ‘prolonged’ one which has a ‘substantial’ impact.

He also described the litter tray incident as ‘gratuitous degradation’ of the complainant.

Offering mitigation on behalf of Massey, Tanya Elahi said that the defendant accepts the offences cross the custody threshold, but she urged the court to suspend the sentence due to his ‘realistic prospect of rehabilitation’.

“The defendant is remorseful for his actions and accepts the way he dealt with the incident is not the correct way,” she added.

“He takes full responsibility for his behaviour and realises he should have just walked away,” it was said, as well as that the flooring manufacturer is capable of living a law-abiding life.

“Time spent on remand has given him the shock of the consequences of his behaviour, he knows a suspended sentence would be his last chance, and he knows the consequences if he fails to take that last chance.”

Before sentencing, judge Andrew Menary said: “This was a particularly nasty and unpleasant offence against someone you had, at some point, cared for.

“In many ways, your behaviour deserves prison, but I have to take into account your mitigation, guilty pleas and everything said on your behalf by your barrister.

“Although there must be a prison term, I am going to suspend the operation of it.”

Massey, of Alamein Crescent in Orford, was sentenced to two years in prison suspended for 18 months.

During this period, he must complete 30 rehabilitation activity requirement days, including the Building Better Relationships programme, and 100 hours of unpaid work.

The court also approved a two-year restraining order prohibiting him from contacting the victim or approaching the homes of her and her family.