COEUR d’ALENE — A 35-year-old Post Falls man accused of bloodying his girlfriend with a strike to her head, and threatening neighbors with a folding knife, could spend almost a year in prison.

Derick J. Poirier was sentenced Monday in First District Court in Coeur d’Alene for two counts of aggravated assault and felony domestic battery in connection with an April incident at his E. Maplewood home where his girlfriend said Poirier struck her in the head with a gun.

District Judge Scott Wayman sentenced Poirier to two years fixed and three years indeterminate, but retained jurisdiction allowing the defendant to attend a prison rider program. The rider usually lasts between six and nine months and will determine if Poirier is released in probation.

Felony battery carries a maximum 10-year sentence.

“The impact is long lasting,” Wayman said. “You can’t unring the bell on domestic violence.”

According to Kootenai County deputies, Poirier, a laborer, returned home around 1:30 p.m. on April 21, grabbed a piece of 2x6 lumber from his yard and entered his home at 4301 E. Maplewood where he tried to strike his girlfriend, who was rounding up the couple’s children.

Neighbors heard noises from Poirier’s house and saw him drag and push the 27-year-old victim down the stairs and through the yard, striking her once in the head with what appeared to be his fist.

He later told deputies, according to a report, that he struck her “pretty hard,” resulting in a deep gash that gushed blood down her face.

When neighbors attempted to intervene, one of them carrying a baseball bat, Poirier removed a black-handled folding knife from his pocket, opened the 4-inch blade and lunged at the two men, before retreating to his blue Subaru Legacy and speeding away, according to witness statements.

He was later arrested by deputies and booked into the Kootenai County jail.

The victim said Poirier used a handgun to strike her while her children watched, but deputies found no firearm.

Poirier told investigators that he was angry because his girlfriend was attempting to take away his children.

“I came home and my house was emptied out and she was in the process of taking my children,” Poirier told the court. “As soon as I hit her I knew I did wrong.”