VIOLENT bully David Skelton left his ex-girlfriend terrified after twisting her neck so viciously that she thought it was going to snap.
He later wielded a knife at her and his young son before angrily threatening to kill both of them, a court heard.
Skelton, 29, of Chatsworth Place, Cleethorpes, admitted assaulting Louise McPhee on May 25, assaulting her and their young son, John Skelton, on August 25 and possessing a claw hammer as an offensive weapon on August 27.
Craig Lowe, prosecuting, told Grimsby Crown Court that Skelton and Miss McPhee, 24, had been in a relationship for about three years at the time and lived together in Immingham.
An argument flared and he grabbed her by the neck and squeezed tightly.
He grabbed hold of her hair and twisted her neck around, leaving her terrified that it was going to snap.
He repeated the twisting three times and she screamed in pain.
Skelton later admitted that he had drunk 14 cans of lager.
The other assaults happened when Skelton became aggressive and told Miss McPhee that it would be the last time she saw their young son.
He warned her: "I'll kill both of you" and grabbed a large meat knife before snarling: "You may as well say your goodbyes – it will be the last time you see each other".
He put the knife at the back of his son's head and Miss McPhee begged him to take it off.
Skelton pointed the knife towards her throat and warned her: "I'll do you first, then."
She begged him to leave her alone but he waved the knife towards her stomach and their son's back.
He later put the knife away but pushed her around and grabbed her nose between his thumb and his finger, causing her to struggle to breathe.
Two days later, Skelton went to the home of Miss McPhee's family in Talbot Road, Immingham, and was abusive towards her father, George McPhee.
Skelton pulled out a claw hammer, shouted "come on" and held it above his shoulder.
He shouted: "I'm going to get someone from the Yarborough estate to come and murder you tonight."
Skelton told the court: "I can't really recall the offences because I had a problem with alcohol. That was the cause of it. I just wish it had never happened.
"I want to look to the future and put the bad past behind me."
He added that he had been working six days a week as a labourer at Immingham docks and claimed that he had not touched alcohol since August Bank Holiday.
Recorder Jonathan Bennett told Skelton: "They are serious matters. You put Louise McPhee through a number of hours of real anguish."
He branded the knife-wielding incident a "horrible evening" that left her in real fear.
Skelton, who also admitted breaching a suspended prison sentence imposed in July for assaulting Miss McPhee, was jailed for a year. He was given an indefinite restraining order, banning him from contacting Miss McPhee and their son, except via the authorities.
