A THUG who reduced one woman to a “quivering wreck” and assaulted a second woman will hit other women in future, York's top judge has warned.

A dog walker found the first woman covered in blood at 8am after she had hidden in a garden at night to get away from Jack James Thomas, said Jonathan Gittins, prosecuting.

She didn’t know Thomas and the psychological effect of his attack was so great, she has had to give up her job.

She had previously worked for the Ministry of Defence and the Cabinet Office.

“She has not felt safe since this incident and she is not sure if her life will be safe again,” said Mr Gittins.

“You reduced this woman to a quivering wreck,” the Recorder of York, Judge Sean Morris, told Thomas at York Crown Court.

Thomas had also injured his then girlfriend in a separate incident.

“One of the first lies you told in this case (involving the civil servant) was ‘I wouldn’t hit a woman’,” the judge said. “Well you have done it, you have done it before and you will do it again.”

“You are someone who is easily prone to violence and it is time to ensure the public has some rest from you.”

Thomas was given sentences totalling 44 months for his offences against the two women. 

He had previously served prison sentences for violence and other offences and police once found him hiding in a loft as he tried to avoid justice for his crimes

Thomas, 22, formerly of Clifton, pleaded guilty to causing actual bodily harm to the civil servant on the day he was due to stand trial.

Mr Gittins said the civil servant was out in the city centre at 2am on February 19 when she encountered Thomas and his then girlfriend. “She didn’t know either of them,” said Mr Gittins.

She accepted their invitation to go with them to a house on a road off Water Lane, Clifton, for more alcohol.

There, when talking about children, Thomas began to get aggressive, and the civil servant tried to leave.

He grabbed her and pushed her to the floor where she curled up in a ball.

Thomas kicked out and stamped on her, landing blows on her face and body as he shouted abuse at her.

“She next remembers hiding in a garden nearby,” said Mr Gittins. “At 8am, she was found covered in blood by a member of the public walking a dog.”

The civil servant’s injuries included a broken nose, a black eye and bruising on her arms and legs.

In a personal statement she said she now takes anti-depressants and has constant nightmares reliving what happened to her.

Thomas was jailed for 30 months for that offence. The sentence starts partway through the 14 months he was given in June 2023 for causing actual bodily harm to his then girlfriend.

For Thomas, Chris Dunn said he was a very young man and now had family reasons to reform himself and lead a law-abiding life.