An elderly man pushed his Parkinson’s suffering wife to the floor and kicked her in the face.

John Carr had been drinking when he lost his temper with his partner Ruth during an argument at their Coxheath home in April.

The couple, who have been married for 50 years, have now been separated by social services after a neighbour heard their row and contacted the police.

When officers arrived at the property in Pembroke Road, Mrs Carr told them her husband had pushed her over and kicked her on the chin as she lay on the floor.

Carr was later charged with assault in relation to the April 20 incident.

The 81-year-old, now of Union Street, Maidstone, admitted the offence when he appeared with his mobility aid at Sevenoaks Magistrates’ Court on August 23.

Prosecutor James Nichols said: “John and Ruth have been 50 years married and are both in their 80s.

“She has Parkinson’s disease and for the past 12 years has been fragile and vulnerable and has mobility issues.

“Social Services are now involved to protect Ruth and that is currently going through the courts.

“A neighbour heard the disturbance and contacted the police and when officers arrived she told them he had shouted at her and pushed her, and she fell to the floor.

“He then kicked out and caught her on the chin, there was contact, by no injury.”

Tahir Saeed, defending, told magistrates it was not pleasant to see someone of Carr’s age in court.

He said: “He’s pleaded guilty and he had to be prosecuted.

“They have no family support. She was diagnosed with Parkinson’s 14 years ago and her condition has deteriorated.

“There are now protection procedures going through the court and contact (between the pair) is now supervised and he was interviewed without a solicitor and made admissions.

“A neighbour made a statement to say they heard him shouting, ‘I can’t f****** cope anymore’, and he is prone to take alcohol.

“He too has medical conditions; he has to use oxygen and has arthritis and he was finding it very difficult to cope and was drinking more. When he’s in drink, he loses it a bit.

“He’s now under hospice care for his pain and it is now under control, he has stopped drinking.

“They both have serious medical conditions and he was just trying to cope. There are now carers going in and it’s not just each other (anymore).”

Magistrates said it was tragic the case was in court, but added they were pleased to hear Mrs Carr was now protected and support was in place for both of them.

As a result, they said they would sentence Carr outside their usual guidelines for such an offence.

They placed him on a 12-month conditional discharge - telling him he would hear no more about the offence if he didn’t re-offend during that period.

Carr was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £111.