A Banbury man has become one of the first in Oxfordshire to be sentenced for a new offence of ‘intentional strangulation’.
David Crane, 51, set upon a neighbour in the block of flats where they lived in Lennox Gardens, Banbury, on September 4.
It followed the neighbour suggesting that Crane should not swear at his dog.
The defendant went upstairs to the victim’s flat. He throttled and threw blows at the man.
Appearing before Oxford Magistrates’ Court on Thursday morning, Crane, of Lennox Gardens, Banbury, was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment suspended for two years. He had previously pleaded guilty to intentional strangulation and causing actual bodily harm.
Chairman of the bench John Kearsey said: “We’ve thought very carefully about this. It is a serious case and it does cross the custody threshold, but we don’t think it is in the interests of justice to imprison you.”
As part of his suspended sentence, Crane must complete a mental health treatment order, up to 15 rehabilitation activity requirement days and abide by a restraining order.
Last month, Stephen Persaud was the first in the county to be jailed for the new offence of intentional strangulation. Following a trial at Oxford Magistrates’ Court, he was found guilty of strangling a woman in the city in late July and was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment.
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This story was written by Tom Seaward. He joined the team in 2021 as Oxfordshire's court and crime reporter.
To get in touch with him email: Tom.Seaward@newsquest.co.uk
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