A woman ran barefoot into an Angus high street to flee her drunken husband, a court heard.
Vilis Locmelis from Arbroath punched his wife in the face after she tried to leave their house following an argument over his gambling.
The woman fell down the stairs in a High Street communal close and was found in the street with bruises on her face by police.
The 40-year-old, who came to the UK from Latvia in August last year, escaped jail at Forfar Sheriff Court.
Fiscal depute Hannah Kennedy said the couple had been married for two years, and together for six.
She said: “The accused had left the house, and the complainer was concerned that he was out gambling, and so she left home and found him in one of the local bookmakers.”
On returning home the accused began to be aggressive towards the complainer, and she asked their child to play in his room, hoping to defuse the situation.
“She left the house and walked around town for around three hours, hoping that he would be asleep due to his intoxication,” Mrs Kennedy added.
The court heard the woman had arranged for her son to call her when it was safe to come back to the house.
Mrs Kennedy added: “She got a call from her son, and she returned and started to pack some things.
“She and her son were leaving the property and in the communal landing, they met the accused coming back inside.
“This is where the assault happened.
“He punched her on the face, and that caused her to fall down the stairs.”
The court heard the woman got back up and ran into the street with her child.
Mrs Kennedy added: “She’s barefoot at the time, and police can see she’s got bruising to her face, and she was complaining of a back injury.”
Paramedics assessed her as having sustained soft tissue damage.
Defending Locmelis, solicitor Ian Flynn said the man had “come to his senses” over alcohol and gambling and his client is “a hard worker”.
He said: “He and his wife are communicating but are maintaining separate households at this time.
“The source of their problems is mainly his gambling.
“He’s gone around and barred himself from the local bookies in Arbroath and they know not to let him bet.”
Locmelis’ sentence had been deferred for criminal justice social work reports.
Sheriff Pino Di Emidio said: “When I first read (this report), it appeared to me that I had no choice but to imprison you.
“I have been persuaded by Mr Flynn to find another way.
“As an alternative to imprisonment, I will give you a community payback order to address some of the issues that have led to you coming to court.”
Lokmelis, of East Grimsby, admitted assaulting a woman to her injury on August 12.
He was given 90 hours of unpaid work to be carried out over a year, with supervision and the additional requirements to attend a “positive relationship” programme, and to submit to treatment for alcohol dependency.
A progress review was fixed for six months’ time.