THE COURT HAS bonded a Chauncey resident to keep the peace after he slapped and kicked the mother of his children. Niron Cottle has additionally been ordered to pay her $1000.

At the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court(KMC) on Tuesday, June 1, van driver Cottle, of Chauncey pleaded guilty to the charge of assault and bodily harm of his former girlfriend, and the mother of three of his children.

The incident in question occurred on December 30, 2020, at Montrose. Cottle’s former lover had clocked off work and was, at approximately 9:05pm, in the parking lot of her workplace awaiting transportation. While she was there, Cottle arrived in a vehicle. He pulled his former lover into the vehicle. She asked him why he was behaving like this, and pointed out that they were no longer together. This is said to have upset the defendant to the point where he began to slap her to both the left and right sides of her face. After the young woman asked the defendant if she could exit the vehicle, Cottle stopped in the vicinity of the Central Water and Sewerage Authority(CWSA) at Old Montrose. It is said that when she was about to exit the vehicle, Cottle kicked her in her back.

She reported the matter to the police, who gave her injury report forms which were taken to a doctor and were presented in court.

Cottle admitted to the police that he committed the offence.

The first thing the 36-year-old defendant said when asked about the length of their relationship was “Since we were going school, I was the one who was tekking care of everything concerning college come right up…, he responded”.

“Correct me if I’m wrong…he used to abuse you, beat you and so on?” Senior Magistrate Rickie Burnett asked the young woman, who was in court.

“Yes,” she replied looking unwaveringly at Burnett. Leaning forward while maintaining eye contact, she repeated pointedly, “Yes. During the four years of our relationship.”

The defendant seemed to laugh at this, which drew attention. He noted, “Yeah my honour, sorry about that…”, muttering something about when people say certain things about “you”.

“…I’m only going based on the facts that were given by the prosecution. Based on what happened on the 30th of December 2020, you think a sensible magistrate like this magistrate will go on to think that this is the first time this was happening?” he asked Cottle.

“…No well, my worship” he responded.

The young woman continued telling the magistrate her side of the story, but during this, the defendant laughed again.

“Why are you laughing?” Prosecutor Sergeant Renrick Cato questioned, asking Cottle whether it was a joke to him.

“No is how she telling lies on me,” Cottle responded.

His former lover said she wasn’t telling lies on him.

The magistrate informed the defendant that the maximum penalty for the offence was a prison term.

“So in a matter of minutes your life can change from smiling and laughing to a brand new uniform. So you better stop that,” Burnett cautioned him.

The young woman spoke about her face being swollen at times in the past so she had to call off work. She admitted that he helped to pay part of her college tuition and some other expenses, and claimed he always told her if it wasn’t for him she wouldn’t have gone to college, and commented it was therefore as if he needed payment for what he did.

“Beating me was it? Beating me was the payment?” she addressed him across the court.

The defendant, in his comments, said that no one had ever said their relationship was over before the night in question. He spoke about various frustrations on that day, not being able to reach her on her cellphone, and seeing her in the company of someone else. He admitted to holding her hand and putting her in the vehicle that night. Cottle said he slapped her twice because she scraped him, but said he did not kick her.

The judicial officer pointed out that the young woman did not willingly enter the vehicle.

“I might probably move wrong” by forcing her, the defendant acknowledged.

He went on to tell the court about the rumours people were telling him about the young lady when he used to work in the Grenadines.

However, the court reiterated, “This matter could have been handled differently by you.”

Cottle agreed.

The young woman, when asked, said that she wanted compensation from her former lover for the assault.

Therefore, the court bonded the defendant in the sum of $1500 for one year; if he breaches this and lands before the court within a year, he will have to pay the sum or spend six months in jail. The court also ordered compensation of $1000 to be paid by August 31, or the defendant will spend three months in prison.