A DOMESTIC bully who scared his girlfriend so much that she felt killing herself was her only hope of escape has been jailed for three and a half years at Worcester Crown Court.

Kieron Lavelle broke Tammy Hart's knee with a curtain pole, which snapped in half. She was left in excruciating pain, said David Iles, prosecuting. Eleven days later, he hurled a metal padlock into her face during another fit of temper and she was scarred for life.

Lavelle, 23, of Park Street, Kidderminster, pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawful wounding. Judge Michael Mott described them as nasty incidents carried out against a background of violence.

The couple had been in a relationship for a year but it had always been violent, said Mr Iles. Lavelle had hit Miss Hart many times when he was in a terrible temper.

In the first attack with the curtain pole, Lavelle erupted in jealous anger after finding a letter mentioning Miss Hart's former husband. She hobbled around for nearly three weeks before an X-ray identified the break.

After being injured with the padlock, Miss Hart screamed she was going to die. Lavelle called an ambulance but claimed the injury had been an accident.

When Lavelle left the house, she called the police and told them she was scared. Mr Iles said she told them: "While we were together, I considered killing myself. I felt it was the only way to get away from him. I was in constant fear and I don't know why I stayed so long."

Lavelle, who had numerous convictions dating back to 1996, was said by Tim Sapwell, defending, to be affected by heroin. When he was not on drugs, he was straightforward and decent and he intended to change his life in future.