A MAN who battered his partner to death has been locked up indefinitely for the public’s protection.

Claire Hanley, 31, was attacked by Brian Davies at her home in Sergrim Road, Huyton, last year.

The killer left her beaten and bruised to die on the sofa.

Davies, 49, was given an indeterminate sentence for public protection yesterday at Liverpool Crown Court.

But His Honour Judge Gerald Clifton shocked Ms Hanley’s grieving family by announcing he would serve a minimum five-year tariff.

As he has spent 217 days in custody, Davies could be released in about four years.

Davies, described by the judge as “a danger to women”, had a history of attacking his previous female partners. In the 1980s, he and his brother raped a hairdresser they met in Liverpool city centre, attacking her twice on a deserted Otterspool promenade.

Ms Hanley’s family broke down in tears when the sentence was announced.

On November 3 last year, tempers flared between the couple in a city centre bar after Davies accused Ms Hanley of dancing with a younger man.

The pair argued and Ms Hanley got a taxi home to Sergrim Road on her own, closely followed by Davies.