A serial domestic abuser has escaped jail after admitting to abusing three former partners over a 10 year period.
Twisted John McMillan who stole all the left shoes belonging to one of his victims in a bizarre bid to stop her leaving her home, was instead given a two-year community payback order and was tagged for 11 months at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court.
Sheriff Alastair Thornton also imposed three non-harassment orders in relation to his victims, demanding he stays away from them for a period of three years.
McMillan's solicitor Iain McCafferty told the court McMillan, a first-time offender from Fife, had suffered from poor mental health and had his own psychiatric nurse, but stressed that was "no justification" for his behaviour towards his victims.
He argued that a jail sentence would not address McMillan's offending behaviour or the risk to the public of him reoffending.
"He does want to improve his situation," he said.
The Sheriff agreed, telling McMillan, "Any custodial sentence would be relatively brief and for that reason I will impose a stringent non custodial sentence with a programme requirement as part of a community payback order, and you will be under supervision, for 24 months.
"There has to be a punishment element and that will be a restriction of liberty order. The starting point for that would be 12 months, which I will reduce to 11 months to reflect your guilty plea.
"There will need to be a non harassment order and if you breach any of these orders you will be facing a lengthy custodial sentence."
He ordered McMillan, 38, of Glenrothes, to stay in his home between 7pm and 7am every night for the duration of that order and to take part in the Caledonian domestic abuse programme for two years.
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