Bradley Paul White’s extended DV assault over Tinder argument nearly kills former partner in her own home

A man who violently assaulted his former partner over her Tinder account kicked her in the chest until her right lung collapsed. Without medical help, the act of domestic violence could have killed her.

A man who violently assaulted his former partner for almost 20 minutes caused serious injuries that almost killed her in her own home.

Bradley Paul White had been casually seeing his former partner when he turned up at her home on June 8, 2021 and started a fight demanding she delete her Tinder profile.

Mackay District Court heard how the extended assault left the woman with a collapsed lung, a fractured sternum, 14 fractured ribs, and bruises across her face and body.

White pleaded guilty to charges of assault, grievous bodily harm, and choking in a domestic setting.

Crown prosecutor Caitlin Penfold said the “protracted and vicious attack” occurred three days after White and the woman had dinner together.

Bradley Paul White violently assaulted his former partner after demanding she delete her Tinder account.

Ms Penfold said the 48-year-old man threw the woman onto the tiled floor, kicking her as she tried to crawl away, before kneeling on her chest to crush and choke her.

“When the (woman) told him to stop or said, ‘This is not okay, you can’t do this’, he grabbed her throat and squeezed until she couldn’t breathe,” she said.

“At one stage during the ordeal, he wrapped a towel around her neck, cutting off her breath.”

The court heard White told the woman “if I see you again, I’m going to kill you”.

Appearing from prison via videolink, White sniffled and wiped away tears as his offending was detailed.

Ms Penfold said White left the house several times for “no longer than 25 seconds” to go to his car outside, before returning inside to continue the assault.

The woman was taken to Mackay Base Hospital with serious injuries and had to undergo a chest drain surgery to re-expand her collapsed right lung.

Ms Penfold told the court “the collapsed lung was life threatening and, if left untreated, it was likely that she would have died”.

“In terms of the recovery process, she was unable to buy her own groceries for about four to six weeks,” she said.

“Every movement hurt and sneezing felt like she was breaking her ribs all over again.”

Judge Tony Moynihan heard the 45-year-old woman had been a very fit person who enjoyed running, cycling, and lifting weights, all of which were impossible for her as she recovered.

Defence barrister Scott McLennan said his client had a troubled upbringing with his father “ruling with an iron fist” and that he suffered a sexual assault from a video store owner at 13 years old.

The court heard White has two grown children with another former partner and a good employment history as an operator at the Coppabella coal mine.

Mr McLennan said his client had told him he “never set out to do any of this”.

“Emotions were high and I just lost control”.

The defence submitted a psychiatric report diagnosing White with high-functioning autism.

However, Judge Moynihan said he would only place “limited weight” on the diagnosis because of White’s pre-existing violent criminal history.

Judge Moynihan said White would remain in jail with a head sentence of five and a half years, as well as pay the victim $5000 in compensation.

No parole date was set, with parole eligibility to be determined by Correctional Services.

Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly identified White’s children as being related to the victim in these matters based on unclear submissions made in court, but the Daily Mercury understands the children relate to a different former partner.