A man accused of assaulting his girlfriend was admonished and discharged rather than sentenced to prison when he appeared in the St James Parish Court on Friday.

Rhojan Sterling, 32, was facing a charge of assault occasioning bodily harm.

The court was told that on November 11 last year the couple got into an argument in Catherine Mount and the complainant walked away. Sterling then grabbed her by the hair and assaulted her.

“Are you still together? Is the relationship at an end?” Parish Judge Sasha-Marie Smith-Ashley enquired, but Sterling remained silent.

“When was the last time you saw her?” the judge then asked.

“Last week, your honour,” Sterling said.

“Most of the things you heard are not what happened. She has an attitude and disrespects me anytime she speaks. I did grab her by the hair, but in terms of abusing her, I did not. I took a tambourine and threw it at her,” Sterling told the judge.

“So why did you do it?” the judge asked.

“Out of anger, your honour,” Sterling said.

“Is this your first physical altercation?” the judge asked.

“Yes, your honour,” said the accused man.

“What have you learnt from this experience?” the judge enquired.

“I’ve learnt that I need an anger check,” Sterling replied.

“That’s right…There will be disagreements but just walk away… If that is the nature of your relationship, you need to think whether or not you ought to be in it,” the judge told Sterling.

“You are admonished and discharged. Behave yourself,” Judge Smith-Ashley said before allowing Sterling to leave the courtroom.