A woman who stabbed her partner in a fit of rage after he punched her in the back was yesterday given a suspended sentence.

Nathalie Micallef, 31, was jailed for one year suspended for three years, after she perforated Brian Pace’s abdominal cavity and hit his internal organs with the knife.

The two had three children but a troubled relationship, which had even been broken off with both taking new partners, as Ms Micallef constantly demanded that Mr Pace change his ways.

On June 30, 2009, an argument broke out in the bedroom of the couple’s Msida apartment and Mr Pace punched Ms Micallef in the back. She went to the kitchen and warned him not to follow her as she would use a knife.

However, he ignored her and followed her. She stabbed him once in the stomach, called an ambulance and accompanied him to hospital.

The defence lawyers argued that Ms Micallef had no other choice but to stab Mr Pace out of self-defence because he was drunk.

However, Magistrate Doreen Clarke noted that the evidence did not support claims that Mr Pace was drunk. In fact, he was fully aware of what had happened – even when he arrived in hospital.

Ms Micallef had also told the police that she got extremely angry because he hit her. “But now that I’m no longer angry, I’m very sorry for what happened,” she said.

Magistrate Clarke observed that Ms Micallef had every chance to leave the apartment if she truly felt her life was in danger. Instead, in a moment of anger and not fear, she went to the kitchen to fetch a knife and stab him.

In handing down judgment, she took into consideration the fact that Ms Micallef had a clean police record and that Mr Pace had requested not to testify against her.

Police Inspectors Chris Pullicino and Kevin Farrugia prosecuted.