Judge Gerard Lynch described the case as “one of the most serious family harm matters I’ve seen in a long time”.
Horlock made an application for a discharge without conviction, claiming a conviction would put him at the “bottom of the pack” for future employment opportunities.
He had work experience in bartending and security, but because of his admitted offending, his security licence has been stripped.
But Judge Lynch rejected the application, highlighting the power imbalance between Horlock, who is more than six feet tall and weighs 150 kilograms, and his victim.
“Choking your partner is one of the rawest displays of brute force and dominance,” the judge said.
According to the summary of facts, Horlock and his now ex-partner were living together during the Covid lockdown in September 2021.
The pair were arguing when he grabbed the woman by both sides of her head and pushed her into a wall.
During the 10-minute physical and verbal assault that ensued, he asked the woman, “Do you like it when I hurt you?”
The following month, another argument between the pair escalated into violence, with Horlock grabbing the woman by the hair and repeatedly throwing her around.
When she was tossed into the corner of a bed base, she lost feeling on the left side of her body and was unable to move for a time.
Horlock then delivered a blow to her jaw.
In November 2021, the woman, who was six months pregnant at the time, suffered another attack at the hands of Horlock, with this incident causing her to fear she would die.
He pulled her by the ponytail four times until the woman’s neck cracked.
Horlock then put her in a headlock for five minutes while she was face-down on the bed, causing her to struggle to breathe.
Shortly afterwards, he placed the woman in a martial arts hold known as a “Kimura arm lock” before striking her arm in a karate chop motion and causing it to break.
Horlock then released the woman and called emergency services, telling the call-taker they had been play-fighting. He was arrested shortly afterwards.
The woman was transported to the emergency department at Christchurch Hospital, where she spent five days due to her injuries.
In court, Horlock’s lawyer asked the judge to impose a sentence of home detention, given the discharge without conviction had been denied.
He submitted his client had positive prospects of rehabilitation due to his young age.
Judge Lynch questioned Horlock’s remorse, pointing to reports provided to the court which revealed “at no point” had he expressed genuine remorse for his victim.
The judge accepted parts of Horlock’s life “had not been easy”, but did not overlook the seriousness of the offending, which he said was against a particularly vulnerable woman.
Horlock received discounts for his guilty pleas, previous good character, youth and his proven commitment to rehabilitation.
He was sentenced to 10 months of home detention and 80 hours of community work.
Judge Lynch imposed special conditions prohibiting Horlock from possessing or consuming alcohol or non-prescribed drugs. A protection order was also granted in favour of the woman.
Emily Moorhouse is a Christchurch-based Open Justice journalist at NZME. She joined NZME in 2022. Before that, she was at the Christchurch Star.
