Man left with fractured vertebrae after privately educated ex-girlfriend forced him to jump from window during brutal domestic violence attack

A man was left with injuries including fractured vertebrae after leaping from a window when his privately educated ex-girlfriend launched a vicious attack on him shortly after they broke up.Ashley Compton was stabbed in the arm, strangled and hit with household items including a saucepan before he fled through the window to avoid the onslaught from Shannon Galligan, 28.The assault happened at Galligan’s home in Norwich just before Christmas 2024 after their years-long relationship had come to an end.The former pupil at the £25,000-a-year Norwich School – formerly King Edward VI Grammar School, which was founded in 1547 under a royal charter granted by Edward VI and whose alumni include Admiral Lord Nelson - has escaped an immediate custodial term after a judge gave her a suspended two-year sentence despite describing it as ‘serious domestic violence’.Norwich Crown Court heard Mr Compton had visited his ex’s room in shared accommodation in the Norfolk city after they split.She became ‘angry’ for reasons that were not given in court and grabbed a saucepan which she used to hit him ‘on the back of the head’, prosecutor Marc Brown said.The defendant then seized a knife and ‘shoved it into the back of the door’ before she grabbed her victim by his throat. Shannon Galligan, 28, hit her ex with household items including a saucepan before stabbing him in the arm, throttling him and bashing him with a pole before he fled through the window to avoid the onslaught Mr Compton, who was described as ‘afraid’, tried to pull her hand away before he was stabbed in the arm, although he didn’t realise she had done so until later.He then tried to escape down the stairs but was hit with a pole, at which point he ‘jumped from the window’ in the ground floor living room before escaping.The injuries he sustained as he hit the ground included the broken vertebrae and multiple bruises.Galligan, who works as a cleaner at Homebase according to her Facebook account, had been charged with wounding with intent but the prosecution accepted her guilty plea to unlawful wounding.She also admitted intentional strangulation, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and criminal damage.Danielle Donovan, defending, said her client – whose Facebook entry also states she became engaged on New Year’s Day 2020 - was ‘ashamed and appalled’ by her behaviour but said she suffered from ADHD and had struggled to cope in life.Handing down the sentence, which was suspended for 18 months, Judge Bate said he was taking into account Galligan’s neurodivergence and her guilty pleas and accepted the prospect of rehabilitation was ‘good’. Galligan went to £25,000-a-year Norwich School – formerly King Edward VI Grammar School, which was founded in 1547 under a royal charter granted by Edward VI and whose alumni include Admiral Lord Nelson The defendant, who admitted charges including unlawful wounding and intentional strangulation, was given a suspended two-year jail termShe was also ordered to carry out 180 hours of unpaid work, given up to 20 days Rehabilitation Activity Requirement and made the subject of a restraining order which bans her from contacting the victim directly or indirectly for four years.Norwich School is a private selective day school which can trace its history back to 1096 when it was established as an episcopal grammar school by Herbert de Losinga, the first Bishop of Norwich.It moved to Grade I listed Blackfriars Hall, which used to be a Dominican priory church, early in the 16th century before it was refounded under the royal charter.It moved to its current site beside Norwich Cathedral in 1551.Other alumni at the school, which has around 1,200 pupils aged between four and 18, include billionaire former Tory deputy chairman and pollster Lord Ashcroft.Detective Sergeant Amy Nunn said after the hearing: 'I would like to thank the victim for the courage he showed in coming forward and supporting our investigation.'Thanks to his bravery and the dedication of the investigating team, we were able to bring Shannon Galligan before the courts so a judge could sentence her. Judge Anthony Bate said Galligan had committed ‘serious domestic violence’'We would always encourage anyone who has experienced domestic violence to come forward knowing they will be supported.'The Crime Survey for England and Wales covering the year ending March 2025 showed that an estimated 2.2 million females and 1.5 million males, aged 16 years and over, had suffered domestic abuse in the previous 12 months.This was equivalent to approximately 9.1 per cent of females and 6.5 per cent of males.A significantly higher proportion of people in the age groups of 16 to 19 and 20 to 24 years were victims of domestic abuse, compared with those aged 25 years and over. Last month it emerged more than 9,000 domestic abusers are set to walk Britain's streets within three years under Labour's early prison release scheme.