A Warwick handyman was remanded into custody yesterday after he admitted repeatedly striking a woman.Paul Edness, 52, pleaded guilty to assaulting Denise White, causing her actual bodily harm, but told the court that she had attacked him first, biting and slapping him.According to Crown counsel Susan Mulligan, at around 7.30pm last Thursday, Edness attended Ms White’s home in Warwick to work, but a verbal argument broke out.Ms White asked the defendant to leave the property, but Edness grabbed her by the arm, and later by the throat as the situation escalated.The court heard that Edness then pushed the victim into a chair and repeatedly slapped her. She ran to the bathroom and began shouting for help through the window, but Edness pulled her out of the bathroom before grabbing his belongings and leaving.The incident left the victim with a bloody nose and a swollen face.The Tribe Road Number One man was subsequently arrested. When questioned by police, he told officers that she had struck him first.Appearing in Magistrates’ Court yesterday, Edness pleaded guilty to the single count of assault but told the court that he had lashed out only after he was attacked.He said that he and the victim, who were in a relationship, were having a verbal argument when she bit him, slapped him and then grabbed his testicles.“She squeezed my nuts and started biting me,” Edness told the court. “I pushed her off me and she kept on slapping me and kicking me.“It was a reaction to what she was doing.”Senior Magistrate Archibald Warner ordered a social inquiry report and remanded Edness into custody until he can be sentenced in October.Duty counsel Elizabeth Christopher argued against the ruling, saying that the charge of assault causing actual bodily harm rarely leads to a term of imprisonment.“He’s going to lose his job and spend time in custody for something that usually doesn’t attract a custodial sentence,” Ms Christopher said.“He is going to be remanded for two whole months pending sentence. That doesn’t make sense to me.”Mr Warner responded by inviting Ms Christopher to have the decision reviewed.