A chef who was knifed in the back by his girlfriend while he was sleeping proposed to her in court through her barrister.
Gregory Todd, 48, bought a diamond ring to the courtroom as
Tiffany Baillie, 32, admitted carrying out the attack on him.
He almost died after she plunged a 12-inch kitchen knife into him and had to undergo emergency surgery.
But Grogory says he has forgiven his partner and now wants to marry her.
Baillie was remanded in custody at Hull Crown Court after her barrister said Todd had brought a ring to court and wanted to propose.
Now the chef must wait until Wednesday to find out if she will say yes.
Mr Todd insists his partner carried out the attack as he slept in their flat in Hessle, Humberside, because she had lost two babies.
[...]
'I wanted to give her the ring but they won't allow it in prison. I hoped she would get a suspended sentence, so I could propose today.
'She had a miscarriage and lost our baby two weeks before this happened and it was the anniversary of the day she lost her son Lucas who was 10 weeks old. We were both upset. Now I just want her home.'
[...]
He said: 'This just isn’t like her. She doesn’t need to be locked up, she needs help. There were a lot of signs, which maybe I should have picked up on, but I didn’t.
'If somebody I didn’t know stabbed me in the street, I would want them hung, drawn and quartered.
'But I don’t hold this against her at all. Seeing her in prison is my worst nightmare.'
[...]
Baillie admitted causing grievous bodily harm with intent.
Jharna Jobes, prosecuting, said the sentencing range for similar cases is nine to 16 years, with a typical starting point of 12 years.
Mr Genney said: 'What is very unusual is the complainant asking for leniency. Most victims would want you to lock them up and throw away the key.
'He says he wants to marry her and has brought an engagement ring to court.'
Judge Mettyear said: 'This is a very difficult case. The guidelines suggest I should impose a very long sentence, but I have to consider how much weight I can give to the views of your victim.'
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