A serial domestic violence offender in Tasmania who has breached protective orders almost 70 times will spend up to five-and-a-half years in jail for the "terrifying and degrading" abuse of one woman.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, threatened to stab, and choked, punched, stalked and verbally abused his partner of a year.
"Your physical and emotional abuse (of the woman) was the continuation of a long-standing pattern of such behaviour towards women," Supreme Court of Tasmania Justice Robert Peace said in sentencing comments published this week.
"(It was a) disregard of court orders put in place in an attempt to protect them, and despite imposition of sentences of imprisonment."
Not long after their relationship began, he held the woman against the wall by the throat, accusing her of infidelity.
At least three times he choked her, once in a choke hold to the point she lost consciousness after he threw her up and down a hallway.
On another occasion, he threatened to stab her with a broken plate while unleashing vile and degrading verbal abuse.
Some of the abuse occurred after the woman had taken out a family violence order.
"There were conditions that you not stalk her, threaten or abuse her or go to where she was living," Justice Pearce wrote.
"Despite the order just having been given to you, you immediately began searching for her. You found her early the next morning."
The man, who was a regular user of the illegal drug ice, claimed he was subjected to violence growing up at the hands of his stepfather.
Justice Pearce noted the prosecution asserted the man had physically abused six other partners.
"You have not been deterred by family violence orders which you have breached on almost 70 occasions," Justice Pearce wrote.
The man has previously faced bail conditions, served community service, two drug treatment orders, and suspended and actual prison sentences.
He was sentenced to five-and-a-half years' jail, backdated to February last year, and is eligible for parole after three-and-a-half years.
He also wouldn't allow the woman to leave the house without him, or use her phone when he wasn't there.
"Over many months you exposed (her) to a terrifying and degrading ordeal, apparently without any insight into the seriousness of your offending," Justice Pearce wrote.
"You betrayed her trust and affection, took advantage of her vulnerability, blamed her for your own acts, all with the intention of making her fearful and compliant."
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