Byron Bay man Derham Brian Tutton faces court for bashing, choking partner

A violent Byron Bay man proved so terrifying to his partner she resorted to hiding a key inside her body to prevent him taking her van. Here’s how a court dealt with him.

Byron Bay’s Derham Brian Tutton, 65, has been jailed for bashing his partner. Picture: iStock

A violent Byron Bay man proved so terrifying to his partner she resorted to hiding her own car key inside her body to prevent him taking her van, a court has heard.

Derham Brian Tutton, 65, pleaded guilty at Byron Bay Court over video link on Tuesday to two counts of assault, one count of intentionally choking a person without consent and breaching an AVO on two occasions.

The man had been in a relationship with his partner for more than three years when he became “agitated” in her home on February 19 last year, according to police documents.

“He began making declarations the world was going to end in March and he would make sure of this,” police stated.

The woman feared for her safety and left the home, but returned soon after to retrieve her cat.

Police documents state she inserted the van key into her body cavity before she returned to the home to prevent Tutton taking her van.

The woman was bloodied and bruised when she approached police after the attack. Picture: Liana Boss

Tutton then pulled the woman’s hair and punched her in the face several times before he kicked her in the kidney.

“You’re a piece of sh*t, you deserved it. I’m going to kill you,” Tutton said.

The woman called out for help before fleeing from Tutton into a bedroom

He pinned the victim to the floor and strangled her while she “begged him to stop”, worrying she was going to die.

“Stop, stop. I don‘t want to die,” the woman said.

She took the key from inside her and gave it to Tutton, who left the house in her car.

Police pulled Tutton over on Jacaranda Dr in Byron Bay and spotted blood on the bottom of his shirt and on a knuckle on his right hand, police documents state.

Tutton told police his partner “was going off” so he was travelling to a nearby park.

“His eyes were glazed and he smelt like liquor,” police state.

Tutton was breath tested and blew almost three times the legal limit after the attack.

Tutton was breath tested and recorded a positive reading of 0.149 – almost three times the legal alcohol limit for driving.

He told police he downed several shots of vodka before getting behind the wheel.

The woman was “visibly distressed” when she made a statement at Byron Bay Police Station, according to police.

She was suffering from facial swelling, abrasions and cuts, had blood on her face and the skin on her neck was red.

Magistrate Karen Stafford said jail-time was the only appropriate type of sentencing.

Tutton was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment with a non-parole period of six months.

Originally published as Byron Bay man Derham Brian Tutton faces court for bashing, choking partner