Nassau-A man broke the national curfew to cool off after a domestic dispute with his girlfriend, a court heard.
Police arrested Maxwell Bridgewater, 35, on Moore Avenue at 7pm on May 16 for failing to remain at home.
Bridgewater admitted the violation at his arraignment before Magistrate Samuel McKinney.
He told the court that police would have locked him up for something else if he had stayed at the home that he shares with his girlfriend at Wilson Track after the domestic dispute.
Bridgewater said, “I decided to go by my family before I hit her or something worse.”
The magistrate told him that he had made the right decision.
McKinney said, “It’s preferable to leave a confined space with someone during a tense situation before it escalates. You chose the lesser of two evils.”
Despite his wise decision, Bridgewater didn’t get off completely.
The magistrate sentenced him to probation for three years. If he violates the terms of his probation, he’ll have to pay a $1,500 fine to avoid spending six months in prison.
Officials have reported a jump in cases of domestic violence as people are forced to remain at home.
Curfew violators face a maximum of 18 months in prison and fines up to $10,0000.
The measures were put in place to reduce the spread of the contagious disease that has killed more than 300,000 people worldwide.
The country has been under curfew since March 20. Since then, police have arrested more than 800 curfew violators.