A SETTLE man who repeatedly smashed his girlfriend's face into a tiled floor and dragged her naked across a carpet has been handed a suspended prison sentence.

William Stanwick, 23, who admitted three counts of assault by beating was sentenced to a total of 17 weeks by Skipton magistrates.

Magistrates, describing the assaults as 'shocking', also ordered him to carry out 200 hours unpaid work and pay his former girlfriend £500 in compensation.

Stanwick attacked his long term girlfriend, who he had known since primary school, at his family home on May 22 following an argument about another woman, the court heard.

He attempted to choke her, dragged her naked across a floor, causing carpet burn, and threatened he would get her to lose her job and get her to kill herself.

Nadine Clough, prosecuting, said the 23 year old woman ran to an en-suite bathroom to hide and to call the police, but Stanwick found her and took the phone away.

He then smashed her face, three or four times against the tiled floor. On seeing her immediately swelling eye, Stanwick stopped what he was doing, hugged her and put ice from a freezer on her face, said Miss Clough.

The incident, which left the woman with a swollen eye socket and bloodshot eye, and at the time at risk of permanent damage, was the last and worst of three incidents from the start of the year.

At some point during the new year holiday, Stanwick had pushed her against a wall during a walk to Penyghent. When a passing couple had gone to help, Stanwick had got into an argument with the man.

On another occasion, between March and the end of April, he had thrown her to the floor in the car park of Booths supermarket in the town, and when a member of the public appeared, he had pretended to be helping her, said Miss Clough.

In a victim statement, read out in court, the woman explained how she had not initially wanted to report Stanwick, but she had been shocked by the last assault, which had been more than the usual 'pushing around'.

She described herself as a victim of physical and mental abuse throughout their two year relationship.

She thought he believed his actions were acceptable, and that he had commented to mutual friends that he hoped she would 'drop dead'.

Stanwick, a man of previous good character who was supported in court by members of his family, was remorseful and had sought private counselling, the court heard.

In mitigation, John Mewies said the couple, who were no longer together, had a volatile relationship which had raised the concerns of Stanwick's father who had believed it would come to a head and had spoken to both of them about it.

Stanwick had been shocked, alarmed and mortified by the woman's victim statement, said Mr Mewies.

"He has shown immense remorse to me and is alarmed at what he has brought to his family," said Mr Mewies.

Magistrates sentenced Stanwick, of Lonsdale Avenue, to 17 weeks custody for the May 22 assault, and six weeks for each of the other two, all to run concurrently, and suspended for 12 months.

He will also have to complete up to 30 rehabilitation activity requirement days to address relationships within a domestic environment and also pay £115 surcharge and £85 costs.

Magistrates also agreed to a restraining order until further notice barring Stanwick from contacting the woman directly or indirectly.