His relationship with the 35-year-old victim was described as having pivoted around methamphetamine use and violence on the part of both, defence lawyer Michael Vesty said.
“It was an unhealthy relationship that has thankfully come to an end,” Vesty said.
As the 35-year-old victim prepared to read her statement, she suddenly left the court, leaving her daughter to read the statement on her behalf.
After the victim returned and resumed reading, supported by her daughter, Judge Tony Zohrab said it was an inappropriate situation, stopped them from reading in court, and told them he had read the statement himself.
The court heard that the victim and Westrupp met 13 years ago and had been in an “on-off” relationship since then.
They were in what was described as a domestic relationship from about February to October 2021, then continued to see each other after the relationship ended.
The victim said the physical assaults had been too numerous to detail, but it involved him putting his hands around her throat which left her thinking at one stage he would kill her.
The woman said she had been left with chipped teeth from the beatings, and a deformed arm after she was punched so hard while defending herself, that her arm broke.
However, there was no medical evidence proving this as the victim had not attended the X-ray referral.
Another time she was punched so hard in the face that a tooth cut through her cheek.
Westrupp, who appeared in court today via audio-visual link from prison, became agitated and vocal as the victim struggled to read her statement.
The strangulation charge arose from an argument while the pair were staying in a Nelson motel on October 5, 2021.
As the argument escalated Westrupp grabbed the victim around her throat with one hand and held on for 10 seconds, leaving the victim unable to breathe and feeling light-headed.
The victim grabbed Westrupp who then shoved her backwards, causing her to fall and hit her head on a wooden skirting.
Disoriented and bleeding from a small cut on the back of her head, she picked herself up from the floor.
They continued to argue before Westrupp slapped the victim in the face several times and tried to punch her, which she blocked with her arm.
Westrupp then indecently assaulted her and she was unable to push him away because of the painful injury to her arm.
The woman called a friend for help. Several days later Westrupp took the victim to a medical centre for treatment of her injuries that included a chipped tooth, bruising to her hip and legs, and head injuries.
The nurse suspected she had a fractured arm and referred her for an X-ray but she did not carry through with the referral, the summary of facts showed.
Westrupp told a nurse that he had physically assaulted the woman during an altercation and expressed shame for his actions.
Almost a year later, when the victim and Westrupp were driving from Motueka toward Blenheim they began to argue after stopping for food.
Westrupp pulled the victim by the hair across the front seat toward him, then shoved her head back into the driver’s window, before they drove off. While travelling at 110kmh Westrupp pulled on the vehicle’s handbrake, causing it to fishtail and almost crash.
He fell asleep and the victim contacted a friend, who arranged to meet her in Blenheim where they planned to leave Westrupp at a shopping centre.
Then, on Sunday, October 23, 2022, at around 3.30pm the victim picked up the defendant in Christchurch.
The discussion got heated when they began talking about their relationship before the argument became physical with each lashing out at the other.
Westrupp then punched the victim in the face. The force of the blow cut the inside of her cheek and caused a tooth to puncture clean through her lip leaving a hole in her face, bruising and swelling around her jaw, cheek and black eyes.
Judge Zohrab said the offending had been violent and degrading with the strangulation being an attempt to demonstrate his power and control over the victim.
As Westrupp tried to speak, he was cut short by the judge.
“I just want to put all this s*** behind me and get her out of my life ...”
Westrupp was given credit for his guilty plea and was told that the jail term could end up shorter once the time he had already spent in custody was taken into account by prison authorities.
On the driving matter, he was disqualified for nine months.
Tracy Neal is a Nelson-based Open Justice reporter at NZME. She was previously RNZ’s regional reporter in Nelson-Marlborough and has covered general news, including court and local government for the Nelson Mail.
