Shawn Douglas Johnson was placed on a 15 month conditional probation after pleading guilty to assaulting his girlfriend during a stay in a Jasper hotel.

The 32-year-old also received a $1,000 fine for breaking the conditions of his release to stay away from the victim.

The couple had been in Jasper to celebrate an anniversary and had been drinking when a fight escalated resulting in Johnson punching his girlfriend, putting her up against the wall and choking her.

When RCMP arrived on the scene, the girl was sitting on the bed with a bruised and red neck.

According to Johnson’s lawyer, the accused does not drink normally and the situation just “got out of hand” as they had been drinking more than usual.

The couple, who have an eight-month old baby, were seeking to get the conditions of Johnson’s release changed so they could “revive” their relationship, he said.

“How can we move forward if we can’t see each other?” asked Johnson’s girlfriend.

Judge Don Norheim said the reason for the condition was because in the past, he has seen domestic violence victims reunite with their attackers and then refuse to testify against them.

Johnson appealed to Judge Norheim to allow him to see his girlfriend, saying that he had been seeing a psychologist to deal with his anger issues and planned to continue seeking treatment.

“I made mistakes,” said Johnson, “I’ve been going to counselling... I want to fix my home. I’m willing to do anything it takes.”

During sentencing, Judge Norheim explained he was not happy Johnson didn’t follow the conditions of his release. He was particularly unhappy that when the couple did see each other, there was another incident which resulted in a call to police.

“If you take your responsibility seriously, I will not be sending you to jail,” said Norheim.

The conditions of Johnson’s probation mean he must continue counselling, and abstain from alcohol.