A Blenheim man who attacked his pregnant partner told her he did not care about the danger to their unborn baby, police say.

In Blenheim District Court yesterday, Shannon John Arbuckle admitted charges of assault, threatening to injure, wilful damage, unlawfully being in a yard, possession of cannabis and theft of property of less than $500 and was remanded for sentence on October 15.

The charges related to four incidents beginning with the attack on his partner and ending earlier this month when he smashed a window in a cell at the Blenheim police station after being picked up drunk and stumbling into traffic in Maxwell Rd.

Police prosecutor Sergeant Graham Single said, in the first incident, Arbuckle was drunk and aggressive when he demanded his pregnant partner do some house jobs when she came home on May 27. She asked if they could wait until she had a smoke and Arbuckle threw a packet of cigarettes and an empty milkshake container at her, he said.

She refused to pick up one of the dropped cigarettes and Arbuckle pushed her on to the couch, picked up their television and threatened to throw it at her, Mr Single said. The frightened woman locked herself in their van, but Arbuckle followed, punching the driver's door and window, yelling abuse and threatening her, he said.

She pleaded with him to think of their baby, but Arbuckle replied he did not care, Mr Single said.

Police were called and Arbuckle stopped the attack when he heard the police sirens, he said. He told police he had done nothing wrong.

It was the seventh time police had been called after Arbuckle became aggressive or abusive towards the victim and the pair have split up, he said. An older child they had together was not in their care, he said.

In the second incident on May 31, Arbuckle stole a packet of cigarettes from The Dukes Bar in Market St and was arrested later that night at another bar, he said.

On June 6 he entered a conservatory attached to a Blenheim house, but left, saying he was in the wrong house when confronted by the residents, who he did not know, Mr Single said.

Arbuckle was arrested shortly afterwards.

In the final incident, police were called at about 3pm on August 11 by people concerned when they saw Arbuckle walking along Maxwell Rd, drinking and stumbling into the middle of the road. When police arrested him, Arbuckle was carrying 18g of cannabis, and was aggressive and abusive and broke a window at the station, which cost $1507.44 to repair, Mr Single said.

Defence lawyer Philip Watson said the individual incidents all involved low-level offending, brought on by his alcohol addiction. Arbuckle admitted he had a problem with alcohol and was attending Alcoholics Anonymous.

- The Marlborough Express