A drunk Suffolk man who pushed his partner over, causing her to fracture her hip, during a row in the garden has been given a suspended prison sentence.

The victim had gone outside at her home in Balmoral Drive, Haverhill, to have a cigarette after cooking Laurence Le-Duke dinner and he had gone to the back door and started calling her names, Ipswich Crown Court heard.

She had shut the back door to get away from him but he had come into the garden and pushed her from behind causing her to fall over, said Simon Gladwell, prosecuting.

She was in pain and an ambulance was called and when she was taken to hospital it was discovered that she had a fractured hip, as well as bruising to her leg and grazing to her elbow.

She underwent surgery and spent eight days in hospital, said Mr Gladwell.

Le-Duke admitted to police that he had pushed her after he had been drinking and acknowledged that he shouldn’t have done it.

Mr Gladwell said the victim had been in a relationship with Le-Duke for 15 years and hadn’t provided the court with an impact statement nor was she asking for a restraining order.

Le-Duke, 56, of Ruffles Road, Haverhill, admitted assaulting his partner causing her actual bodily harm on June 6 last year and was given a three-month prison sentence suspended for 24 months and ordered to attend a Building Better Relationships programme.

He was also given a 90-day alcohol abstinence monitoring requirement.

Sentencing him, Recorder Gabrielle Posner said: “The tragedy of this case is that you were a man of previous good character which you no longer have.

“The court cannot condone any sort of domestic violence.”

Steven Dyble, for Le-Duke, said that both the defendant and the victim had been drinking during the row in the garden.

He claimed the victim had been giving as good as she got during the verbal argument and Le-Duke had pushed her away when she got in his face.

He said the furthest thing from his client’s mind was that serious injury was going to be caused to her.

“He called the emergency services and stayed with her until the ambulance and police arrived,” said Mr Dyble.

He said Le-Duke and the victim were no longer in a relationship.