Man assaulted his partner as she sat cradling their child at Whitburn house

Matthew Ellis, 26, also spat towards her during an emotionally-charged incident at a property in Hillside Drive, Whitburn, on October 15 of last year.

Prosecutors initially also claimed Ellis kicked her.

But he entered a guilty plea to a charge of assault by beating on the basis he did not, a claim which was accepted in court.

Ellis now faces an anxious wait to learn his fate after hearing that the offence carries a sentence of up to around four months in custody.

An outline of the facts was read by the clerk of the court at South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court.

Prosecutor Liz McGowan told the hearing in response: “That version is accepted by the Crown Prosecution Service.

“The victim was holding a child at the time, which aggravates the seriousness of the offence.

“Although he is a man of good character, this is a domestic violence case. It is up to 16 weeks custody.

“Had this gone to trial, it would have been evidence led, in that she did not give a statement. You will likely need a pre-sentence report.”

Mrs McGowan also applied for bail conditions to be imposed to prohibit Ellis from directly contacting the woman or his son or attending her home.

The Probation Service, which interviewed Ellis about the matter, said there had been “a lot of emotion around the offence”.

It said Ellis was now living with his parents and it was not known if he would be reconciled with his partner.

Jason Dudhee, defending, said: “I’ve taken instructions from him. This case needs to go off for pre-sentence reports.”

District Judge Zoe Passfield adjourned the case for reports and Ellis, now of Sycamore Road, Eaglescliffe, is expected to be sentenced at the same court on Monday, May 11.

She granted him bail on condition he has no contact with his victim or his son, save via an approved third party, and does not attend Hillside Drive.