Herefordshire man locked up after breaking court-ordered ban

James Steele entered a guilty plea to one count of harassment by breach of a restraining order on conviction when he appeared before magistrates in Kidderminster in October.

The court heard from prosecutor Val Hart that the 36-year-old had been made subject to a restraining order banning him from contacting a woman in Bromyard by magistrates in Hereford on April 18.

But, the magistrates were told, he had without reasonable excuse, contacted the woman protected by the order between September 20 and September 23, in breach of the restraining order.

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Magistrates said the offence was so serious that only a custodial sentence could be justified as Steele has a flagrant disregard for court orders and as the offence was committed while he was subject to a community order and a conditional discharge.

It was also an unpleasant message sent in deliberate breach of an order put in place to protect the victim, and there is no realistic prospect of rehabilitation, magistrates said.

Steele, of Little Hereford Street, Bromyard, was jailed for eight weeks and ordered to pay prosecution costs of £185.