A Fife OAP assaulted his wife after quizzing her about her new tattoo.
Retired oil and gas manager John Leslie snapped and left his partner with a grazed knee after she refused to talk about a recent holiday to Bali, Dundee Sheriff Court heard.
The 67-year-old admitted assaulting his wife of 19 years in what was described as a “blip” in their relationship.
Sheriff John MacRitchie deferred sentence for a year, to give Leslie the chance to prove he can stay out of trouble.
Pushed onto bed
Leslie, of Laurel Brae, Springfield, pled guilty to striking his wife on the body before pushing her onto their bed, causing her to fall to her injury.
Depute fiscal Lee Corr told the court: “At around 2pm on May 24, the accused and the complainer were at their home.
“The accused asked his wife to take out her headphones.
“When she did not, he got angry.
“She then took her headphones out and put them away and made her way to the upstairs of the house.
“The accused asked where she was going. She said she was going to sleep.”
Leslie followed her to the bedroom, the court heard.
“As she walked upstairs she felt a force on her body,” Mr Corr said.
“There was a scuffle over her mobile phone, during which the accused grabbed his wife by the shoulders and pushed her on to the bed.
“The complainer hit her knee on the bed, which caused a small graze.”
Cold shoulder
Defence solicitor Robin Beattie, defending, said his client had worked in the oil and gas industry for nearly 50 years.
“He is a man of means and has properties and savings,” he said.
“He has no previous convictions and made frank and honest admissions during to the police.”
Mr Beattie said: “His wife recently has done things he never expected, like going on holiday to Bali with another male and getting a tattoo.
“He wanted to have a discussion to get his marriage back on track.
“When he approached her to do so she was listening to music on her headphones.
“She refused to take them out.
“He responded to the ‘cold shoulder’ very badly.
“He regrets this and is apologetic.
“He believes the marriage is capable of being salvaged and his wife is not seeking a non-harassment-order.”
Assault seemed ‘uncharacteristic’
Sheriff John MacRitchie placed Leslie on a deferred sentence for 12 months, to prove it was “a one-off, a blip”.
He said: “It is always regrettable when someone who has been a valuable member of society appears in court for the first time, as you are at 67.
“The injury was limited, it is still of some seriousness.
“Any offence in a domestic context is taken seriously by the courts.
“I have to balance this with your lack of offending, and that this appears to be uncharacteristic.”
Leslie will return to Dundee Sheriff Court for sentencing on May 28, 2024.
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