New Milton man Scott Smith jailed for 30 months after attacking girlfriend and racially abusing policeman

A JUDGE who gave a New Milton man a “considerable chance” by not sending him to prison last year has now jailed him for 30 months.

Judge Peter Henry had given Scott Smith (26) a suspended sentence when he appeared in July 2023 at Southampton Crown Court. Addressing him this time, he said: “I told you then how extremely close you had come to custody.”

Smith, of Linnet Court, has 14 previous convictions for 28 offences including three of assaulting an emergency worker. He had been released from prison in 2021 after being jailed for offences including possessing a knife.

Appearing at court last week, the defendant pleaded guilty to attacking a police officer and racially abusing another, along with two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, possessing a class B drug and common assault.

The judge added: “It was absolutely clear to you that I was giving you a considerable chance. There has to be an immediate custodial sentence – these are serious offences involving domestic violence and assaulting a police officer simply going about his job.”

Prosecutor Ruba Huleihel said PC Adam Haseem had been called to the defendant’s address on 5th September by neighbours after he had tried to punch one of them and smashed a window.

The officer arrested Smith after searching him and finding cannabis. Ms Huleihel said the defendant called the policemen a “f*****g P**i p***k” and a “Punjab-looking jalfrezi”.

Another policeman who tried to calm Smith down as he sat in a police van was pinned to the side as the defendant tried to hit him.

Six days earlier Smith had violently attacked the mother of his two daughters at her New Milton home. The prosecutor said Smith had accused her of cheating on him.

“He pushed her backwards, landed on top of her, then pinned her to the sofa and hit her around the head twice,” said Ms Huleihel.

As the woman – who had been with Smith for three and half years – tried to shout for help, Smith put his hands on her mouth “to silence her screams”.

She managed to break free, the court heard, and ran to a friend’s home.

On 4th September at around 8.30am, Smith told his girlfriend that he felt “bad about arguing and being mean”. But minutes later he told her “you make me so angry”, before launching a vicious attack during which he grabbed her round the throat telling her to “shut the f*** up!” and pushed her onto a chair.

Defence barrister Keely Harvey told the court her client “comes here knowing the mess he has got himself into”.

She said Smith was “doing well” after leaving prison in 2021, having been working in the same job for over three years. “He just wants to be there, providing for his daughters and staying out of trouble,” she said.

Referring to the attacks on his former girlfriend, she said the relationship was “toxic” and that “each one would press the other one’s button and it would all go wrong”.

She said the offences on 4th and 5th September had been committed after Smith was “tempted by a friend” to go for a drink, and “one drink led to another”.

Jailing Smith for a total of 30 months, Judge Henry also imposed a five-year restraining order prohibiting him from contacting his former girlfriend for five years.