A 36-year-old man who broke his partner’s jaw then drove from the scene of the assault while drunk has been jailed for two years.
When he was behind the wheel, Dean Milligan drove dangerously and under the influence which resulted in a police chase that only ended when he crashed his car.
From Crewe Road in Maghera, Co Derry, Milligan was sentenced for a total of five offences at Belfast Crown Court by Judge Patrick Lynch KC.
Branding Milligan’s driving as “appalling”, the judge said this followed an incident of domestic abuse in the victim’s own home.
The court heard that on the evening of April 10, 2023 Milligan was at his ex-partner’s house in Ballyclare, Co Antrim, where he had been drinking and at around 10pm, whilst in a hot tub he made inappropriate comments to his partner’s daughter and her boyfriend.
The injured party then got out of the hot tub and walked into her kitchen, and she was followed by Milligan who began acting aggressively and who threw a portable speaker at a wall.
Milligan then punched the injured party to her jaw. As she tried to call the police, he grabbed her mobile phone and threw it on the ground which resulted in a smashed screen.
This part of the violent incident was witnessed by the injured party’s 14-year old son who went to the back garden and dialled 999.
As this was happening, Milligan fled and got into his car and sped off.
As police were arriving at the scene, they observed Milligan in his car and radioed to colleagues.
The injured party was taken to Antrim Area Hospital where it was confirmed she had a fractured jaw.
Meanwhile, officers on the lookout for Milligan observed his driving on the M2 passing Antrim and began following him.
A stinger was deployed close to Toome and to avoid this, Milligan accelerated through a roundabout then heading back towards Randalstown on the wrong side of the road.
Officers observed Milligan driving at speeds of up to 120 miles per hour and three cars had to take evasive action to avoid head-on collisions.
Due to concerns over public safety, police halted their pursuit of Milligan but he observed by police again in Portglenone and after they activated lights and sirens, the police pursuit resumed.
As he drove at speed, Milligan overshot a junction and crashed into overgrowth.
He was arrested at the scene and subsequently failed both a breath and blood test.
Milligan later pleaded guilty to five charges - namely assaulting the injured party and causing her actual bodily harm, causing criminal damage to items in her home including her mobile phone, dangerous driving, driving whilst disqualified and driving with excess alcohol.
During Thursday’s sentencing, Judge Lynch noted that Milligan had previous offences for both driving and domestic violence on his record.
Judge Lynch raised several aggravating factors in the case including the domestic incident which left the injured party with a significant injury and which left her teenage son “distraught.”
He also said Milligan’s driving was “appalling” and put other road users in danger.