Man with 7 past restraining orders sentenced to prison in Fall River after violently beating mother of his child in Taunton

A 36-year-old Massachusetts man who viciously beat the mother of his child on New Years Day 2023 in Taunton was sentenced on Monday afternoon to state prison, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn III announced.

Scott Fortes of Mattapan pled guilty in Fall River Superior Court to indictments charging him with Strangulation, Assault and Battery with Serious Bodily Injury, Assault and Battery with a Dangerous Weapon Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury and Domestic Assault and Battery. He was sentenced to serve four to six years.

On December 31, 2022, Fortes and the victim attended a family New Years Eve celebration in Easton. In the early morning hours of January 1, 2023, the couple left the gathering and an argument started while they were en route to her home in Taunton. Once inside the home, Fortes punched the victim in the face. The victim landed in the bathtub, and he continued his violent attack, punching her repeatedly. The attack spanned four rooms in the home and several minutes. At one point Fortes struck her with a book, resulting in a contusion that left scarring to the victim’s forehead. Injuries from the punching included a fractured maxillary sinus (upper part of the jawbone). The defendant also strangled victim to the point she could not breathe.

Fortes kept the victim in her home for two days, “draining” her wounds until finally leaving her at Massachusetts General Hospital. He has had seven past restraining orders filed against him in Massachusetts.

During a hearing on Monday afternoon before Judge Renee Dupuis, Assistant District Attorneys Jennifer Czapiga and Kalene Kobza recommended an eight-to-10-year state prison sentence, while Fortes requested a two-to-four-year prison term. Judge Dupuis eventually sentenced the defendant to four to six years in state prison, to be followed by three years of supervised probation.

“This is a brutal case of domestic violence that resulted in broken bones to the victim’s face. The defendant repeatedly beat and strangled the victim over a prolonged period of time. The defendant’s violent conduct requires a lengthy sentence to hold him accountable, and to protect the victim and the public from him,” District Attorney Quinn said.