A violent man who partially blinded a woman after racially attacking her has been jailed for more than five years.

Christopher Edward Norton, 44, told the victim “You’re lucky, I didn’t cut your (breasts) off” after the second attack, said Marta Alnaes, prosecuting.

A few weeks earlier he had threatened to kill her son and called her a racist name after hitting her in the face.

On meeting him during the festive season between Christmas and New Year, she tried to avoid him but he followed her from one house to another.

There he repeated his threats about killing her son, before punching her so hard, he caused several fractures in her face and blinded her in one eye, said Ms Alnaes.

He was on bail for a street incident with a machete next to a primary school at the time.

Norton has a long history of violence, including serving a lengthy prison sentence for stabbing and nearly killing two men, and another prison sentence for squirting ammonia into a man’s eyes.

Norton, formerly of Fossway, York and now of D’Arcy Road, Selby, pleaded guilty to causing the woman grievous bodily harm and racially aggravated actual bodily harm.

He also admitted failure to attend his trial for carrying the machete in public and an associated affray, offences he had denied and was convicted of in his absence.

He was jailed for five years and two weeks and made subject to a 15-year restraining order banning him from contacting the woman in any way or making social posts about her.

Judge Simon Hickey said the injuries to her were life-changing.

Of the machete he said: “Nobody in this country needs to possess such a weapon.”

His barrister Emily Hassell said: “The problem he has is linked to his crack cocaine usage and he is very candid about it.”

Ms Alnaes said a resident in Barlby Road, Selby, saw Norton wielding the machete in the street at 4pm on July 15, 2022, close to the school where after-school clubs were in session. He was with two people, who tried to defuse the situation and Norton lowered the knife.

On November 27, the woman was in a house with Norton and his girlfriend when Norton claimed he had been stabbed sometime before by the woman’s son and punched her in the face causing swelling and bruising before leaving.

On December 30, the woman was at a friend’s house when Norton “suddenly” arrived and immediately started shouting abuse at her and repeating the threats to kill her son. She left and Norton followed her to the house where he partially blinded her.

Ms Hassell said there were no children present during the street incident and no children would have been able to see it from the school.

The two attacks on the woman were short-lived and spontaneous.

She said Norton was a “crackhead” who took drugs and made allegations about the woman taking drugs.