A Mangerton woman who pierced her boyfriend's lung four years ago stabbed him again in a second attack months after being released on parole.
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Jahnessa Jerome was sentenced at Wollongong District Court on Wednesday, after pleading guilty to the reckless wounding of her ex-partner on May 6, 2023.
Jerome previously stabbed the same man in 2020, leaving him with a life-threatening injury after the final of three unprovoked strikes pierced his lung.
She was jailed for the attack in 2021 and an apprehended violence order was put in place to protect the man.
When Jerome was released on parole in late 2022, she made several attempts to contact the victim by calling him daily. Parole officers gave her a verbal warning.
However Jerome was undeterred, breaching the apprehended violence order months later by turning up to the man's home and refusing to leave.
The victim contacted police, but Jerome had fled the scene by the time they arrived. She returned to his home the following week on May 6 and snatched the victim's phone from him.
The victim demanded his phone back so he could call triple-0, telling Jerome: "I've had enough of you."
He grew frustrated and began wrestling Jerome in a bid to retrieve his phone, however she tackled him to the ground and grabbed a steak knife.
She slashed the victim, leaving him with a six-centimetre wound on his left arm, a wound on his wrist, and a wound on his palm so large that muscles and nerves were visible.
The man scrambled to stop the bleeding by wrapping his injuries in a scarf, while Jerome went out the front, still in possession of the knife.
A neighbour called triple-0 and Jerome was arrested shortly after, declining an interview with police when taken to the station. Her parole was revoked and she has remained behind bars since.
The victim was taken to Wollongong Hospital and remained there for four days. He had surgery to repair a nerve in his finger that had been completely severed.
Judge William Fitzsimmons outlined Jerome had an unstable upbringing and developed an alcohol and drug addiction in her teenage years. She was later diagnosed with schizophrenia.
The judge referred to a psychologist report that said Jerome had failed to address her serious mental illness in the past, which put herself, the victim, and community at risk.
However, she had since engaged with an Aboriginal health service and an addiction support program which has assisted her in overcoming her drug addiction while behind bars.
Judge Fitzsimmons took Jerome's lengthy criminal record into account, as well as her "flagrant disregard of her orders banning contact with the victim".
She received a jail term of three years and three months, with a non-parole period of one year and 11 months.
With time already served, Jerome will become eligible for release in August 2025.