A JEALOUS man drove his girlfriend around for two hours and repeatedly smashed her head of the window and dashboard because he did not like who she was talking to at a party, a court has heard.

Magistrates in Newton Aycliffe heard that Joshua Pattison had moved in with his girlfriend just a day after the pair met in August but that he tried to control her from the start.

Prosecutor John Garside said the 21-year-old from Coundon insisted on reading his girlfriend’s text messages and stopped her from going to a new job as he did not like her going out.

He said there was violence from an early stage which came to a head on Sunday, October 28, when Pattison’s partner went to a Halloween party in a pub in Coundon.

Mr Garside said Pattison had told her before she went that he did not want her to speak to certain men, and while she was in the pub she was getting text messages saying she should not be talking to who she was with.

The prosecutor said the girlfriend believed one of Pattison’s friends was watching her and reporting back to him what was going on.

At 2am Pattison, of Gurlish West, picked her up in a car with two of his friends and they drove over to the Chilton area.

During the drive, while keeping one hand on the steering wheel, Pattison grabbed his girlfriend hard by the hair and shook her head about while shouting insults at her, the court heard.

Mr Garside said Pattison ignored one of his friends who told him to stop, and proceeded to bash her head off the window and dashboard about 30 times.

The friends were later dropped off and the assaults continued, ending when his partner called her mother, the court heard.

Mr Garside said she was left with lumps and bruises all over her face and head, and the investigating police officer said he had never seen a victim of domestic abuse so terrified.

Pattison admitted assaulting his girlfriend and also driving the Vauxhall Vectra while disqualified and without insurance.

Clive Booth in mitigation said his client instantly regretted his actions but that the victim may have exaggerated what happened.

He said she had since written to Pattison and said she still loves him.

Magistrates decided to remand Pattison in custody while a pre-sentence report is prepared, which is due before the court on Wednesday, November 21.