A man who attacked his partner with a makeshift mace and poured turpentine in her eyes also sent racist text messages to an acquaintance in the weeks leading up to the attack, a court has heard.
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Nikki Parkinson, 37, has pleaded guilty in the ACT Supreme Court to charges of endangering human life and health and using a carriage service in a menacing manner.
Parkinson was arrested in February last year after he swung a home-made weapon - a pole studded with nails - at his partner, poured turpentine on her face, temporarily blinding her, and threatened to set her on fire after she refused to let him drive her car to the shops to steal alcohol.
A sentencing hearing on Tuesday heard Parkinson had sent five text messages about a month earlier to an Aboriginal woman he had met through a community support group.
The messages, sent over a period of a week, featured racist taunts and included pictures of a Nazi swastika.
The Crown argued the offences were high to mid-range and Parkinson should be sentenced to a jail term.
But the defence argued their client had addressed his mental health issues and alcoholism and showed good prospects of rehabilitation.
Justice Hilary Penfold will hand down sentence next month.
