A man who flew into a rage and threw his baby son two metres across a room has been spared an immediate prison sentence after a court heard he had "matured" since the incident and wanted to seek help.

James Endean, from Truro, had also assaulted his former partner in the same incident last September, while she was holding their nine-month-old son,

Endean, aged 22, had pleaded guilty guilty last month to three counts of assault, cruelty to a child and criminal damage, and appeared before Truro Crown Court this morning (Friday) for sentencing.

The court was told that a row had broken out when Endean's partner at the time, who he was now separated from, said she need him to look after their son as she had to go to work.

Prosecutor Michael Brown described Endean as having woken "in a mood" that had worsened when the woman claimed he was not prioritising their son.

He had gone outside for a cigarette to "calm down", but then "snapped" when she asked him his plans for the day, shouting and swearing at her.

Once again he went outside, and his then-partner got changed for work.

But as she went outside to again ask him to look after their son he "stormed back in" and kicked the living room TV and stand, causing an estimated £450 of damage in total.

Mr Brown said: "[The partner] attempted to diffuse matters and offered to take care of the son. Mr Endean then picked up their son and threw him to [the woman], a distance of about two metres.

"[She] had to catch him in order to prevent him from falling to the ground.

"The defendant then pushed [the woman] to her back, causing her to stumble while she had hold of their son."

He said that while no injury was caused to either of them, the baby was "visibly distressed, screaming and crying."

In a victim impact statement, the woman said she was "scared of what the future holds."

Mr Brown said Endean had three previous convictions, including in 2018 and 2019 involving violence against the same woman,

Mitigating for Endean, Katie Churcher said that throwing the baby was a "lapse in judgement" and something the defendant "regrets deeply."

She added: "He wants to express that he has very much changed his life, in terms of his situation and his attitude."

She said Endean had suffered a "traumatic event" in his childhood and at the time of the offence was not on medication for his mental health, instead using cannabis to manage it. However, he had not used it for six months.

Ms Churcher said Endean worked for Burger King and there was the possibility of a promotion to management. He was also working with the organisation A Band of Brothers, which supports young men in the criminal justice systems.

He would be keen to re-take a rehabilitation programme that he admitted he had not engaged fully in when he last completed it.

Judge Anna Richardson told Endean: "You are beginning to mature and beginning to understand the need to change some of your lifestyle, and to change some of your attitude to prevent future offending."

For cruelty to a child she sentenced Endean to ten months in prison, suspended for 24 months, along with requirements to take part in an activity programme and 30 sessions of the Building Better Relationships programme, with a further six months for the assault on his ex partner, to run concurrently.

He must pay £450 in compensation, along with a surcharge to fund victim services, and a ten-year restraining order was imposed.