A victim of domestic abuse claims she has been let down by the justice system after her former partner was placed on curfew.
Louise Ellwood, 22, suffered a catalogue of abuse at the hands of Sidney Mulholland, who once threatened to pour a kettle of boiling water over her.
At Dunfermline Sheriff Court on Tuesday Mulholland, 34, of Burnside Place, Kelty, was given a three-month restriction of liberty order, after admitting behaving in a threatening and abusive manner on various occasions between November 25 2013 and August 17 2014.
He had also been accused of a more serious offence of assault to injury but his plea of not guilty was accepted and his trial cancelled last month.
Angry he had not been dealt with more severely, Louise said: “They can only give a sentence based on the charge. I would have thought they would have wanted to prove the more serious charge.”
Louise, who said she is still trying to rebuild her life after escaping the two-year relationship, had been cited as a witness in Mulholland’s trial. But she was sent home from court when he pleaded guilty to one of the charges and the other was dropped.
She said: “I went there and waited two and a half hours to hear he had changed his plea.
“I didn’t get my chance to put my side across and tell what happened.
“I have been told there is nothing I can do, other than write a letter of complaint. As far as the case is concerned, it has been dealt with and that’s that.”
She also said when she reported Mulholland the police were anxious to ensure the safety and wellbeing of her and her children aged four and one but once the case went to court she claimed the system was more concerned with Mulholland’s rights.
She said: “I’m still trying to deal with what happened and put my life back together.
“I have two kids and it’s been hard for everyone.”
Louise who still lives in Fife but asked The Courier to withhold her address for fear of Mulholland finding her urged others in abusive relationships to seek help and get out as soon as possible.
She said: “I haven’t had the best outcome but at least I’m out of the relationship.
“If I hadn’t called the police I would still have been going through that now.”
Louise was only 19 when she began seeing Mulholland, who is 12 years her senior.
She said: “Looking back, I can see things I didn’t see then. I would never have classed myself as someone who was in an abusive relationship.”
The court heard that Mulholland had held a kettle over Louise as she lay in bed in the home she shared with him and threatened to pour boiling water on her.
He also shouted, swore, acted aggressively towards her, uttered abusive remarks and threats of violence to her, sent a text message threatening violence and smashed a table and struck doors, causing damage.
The order imposed by Sheriff Craig McSherry requires Mulholland to wear an electronic tag and be in his home between 7pm and 6am each day.