Members of the public who stopped an Illawarra man viciously bashing his ex-girlfriend outside Wollongong railway station last October almost certainly saved her life, a magistrate has said.
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Daniel Noel Chaplin was high on drugs and driven by rage when he attacked the woman on the afternoon of October 8, repeatedly punching, kicking and trying to choke her.
At one stage she passed out, unable to breathe as the 27-year-old squeezed her neck.
Chaplin continued the attack, even picking her up and throwing her into a nearby garden bed while she was still unconscious.
It was only when several witnesses stood between Chaplin and the woman that she was able to regain consciousness enough to escape.
Magistrate Geraldine Beattie said she had little doubt the brave actions of those people protected the woman from further harm.
"If it wasn't for those witnesses who were willing to get involved ... it potentially saved her life from you," she said to Chaplin as he sat in the dock at Port Kembla Local Court on Tuesday.
"It was completely unacceptable, violent behaviour from you; it's disgraceful."
Court documents revealed Chaplin and the woman had been together for seven years before the incident, however their "turbulent" relationship had ended shortly after they moved to Wollongong in September.
Despite this, Chaplin, who was living at the Piccadilly Motor Inn at the time, saw the woman walking in Crown Street just before 4.30pm and approached her, wanting to talk about their failed relationship.
They soon began to argue, prompting the woman to attempt to leave.
However, Chaplin followed, grabbing her around the throat with both hands, pushed her up against a window and repeatedly punching her in the face.
She tried to block the punches and break free, until bystanders intervened and Chaplin left the scene.
However, he returned 10 minutes later, finding the woman at the station and the pair continued their earlier argument.
Chaplin grabbed the woman by the throat for a second time and again lashed out at her, punching her until she passed out.
He then continued the bashing, at one stage kneeing the woman in the nose and causing it to bleed, before throwing her into a nearby garden bed.
A witness who Chaplin overheard ringing the police was told she would "be next".
The woman, while fearful, stayed at the scene to help the victim.
Meanwhile, other commuters took advantage of a brief lull in Chaplin's attack to place themselves between Chaplin and the woman, allowing her to escape.
The woman was treated in hospital for bruising and cuts to her face, as well as a suspected broken nose.
In court on Tuesday, the magistrate imposed the maximum two-year prison sentence allowed in the local court on the choking charge, saying she wished she could jail Chaplin for longer.
