(Image: North Yorkshire Police)
A North Yorkshire man who threw corrosive liquid in a woman’s face and gave her chemical burns has been jailed.
The victim kept silent about the incident for two days until someone noticed her injuries and people learnt what had happened, said Rachael Landin, prosecuting.
As well as causing burns to her face and ear, Ashley Laurence Edward Palliser, 34, had poured the same liquid over the woman’s car.
He claimed it was lemon juice but a forensic analyst said the liquid was potassium hydroxide mixed with potassium bicarbonate, a “corrosive and noxious substance,” said Ms Landin.
Palliser, of Westway, Eastfield, Scarborough, pleaded guilty to wounding the woman and was jailed for 25 months.
He has 64 previous convictions including six for assaults on people and one for carrying a knife, York Crown Court heard.
“You armed yourself with a corrosive substance and threw it on your victim,” the Recorder of York, Judge Sean Morris, told him.
“You are extremely lucky that it wasn’t in her eye.
“You are someone who richly deserves to go to prison for longer than I can give you.”
All judges in England and Wales have to follow national sentencing guidelines when sentencing defendants.
Palliser’s barrister Rhianydd Clement said: “This was a moment of madness. He is deeply remorseful and regrets his actions.”
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Ms Landin said the woman did not co-operate with the police investigation, but police got evidence she had gone to Palliser’s home on October 12 last year and they had argued.
Palliser’s movements in and out of the flat were caught on CCTV including him throwing the chemical on her car.
Medics assessed she had burns on 0.3 per cent of her body.
Ms Clement said members of Palliser’s family including his father would be affected by his imprisonment.
On his release he planned to resume his career as a trawlerman and lead a law-abiding life.
His previous convictions for violence had been some years ago.