A former personal injury attorney from Lake Charles was sentenced Tuesday in state district court for one count of domestic abuse battery.

Marcus Paul Lacombe, 45, received a five-year prison sentence, with all but one year suspended, and credit for time served. He was suspended from practicing law in July.

Jana Townsley, Lacombe’s ex-wife, told Judge Mike Canaday that she and her four children were scared of Lacombe throughout the 20-year marriage.

“His perceived periods of peace and tranquility were never the case,” she said. “Maybe for him but not for us because we had to continuously walk on eggshells.”

The mother of Jana Townsley said she bought a backyard swing set and playground set for her grandchildren only to see it disappear from her daughter’s backyard.

“My granddaughter told me that Marcus chopped it up and burned it to the ground,” said Debra Jane Townsley. “He terrorized my daughter for 20 years; even during her pregnancies.”

Lacombe’s attorney, Michael Antoon, told Canaday that he had never seen a case that had as much litigation as this one, adding that it had been going on for four years and included civil matters and family court matters.

“There were certain things that don’t excuse but certainly explain how some of these things happened,” Antoon said. “A lot of what you’re hearing is emotion. But I’m not depreciating what happened.”

As Canaday sentenced Lacombe, he told him, “You’re an educated and intellectual man, so I hold you to a higher standard. You have some demons you’re dealing with, and that’s why I think you need to continue with the counseling.”

Patricia Post, a licensed clinical psychologist, said Lacombe has undergone 80 counseling sessions over the last couple of years.

Canaday gave Lacombe a month to report for his sentence because Lacombe’s mother is ill and hospitalized in Houston.