Woman, 21, escapes jail after 'glassing' a student at Stroud College summer ball (From Stroud News and Journal)

Woman, 21, escapes jail after 'glassing' a student at Stroud College summer ball

9:00am Sunday 3rd March 2013 in News By SNJ Reporter

A 21-YEAR-OLD Nailsworth woman who glassed another woman in the face during the Stroud College summer ball has walked free from court.

Katherine Martin of Market Street, Nailsworth, burst into tears as Judge Jamie Tabor QC told her he would not lock her up for the attack on Leanne Hudson.

Gloucester crown court heard on Friday that Miss Hudson suffered facial scarring which is still visible now, nine months later.

Martin pleaded guilty to unlawfully wounding Miss Hudson on 29th June last year and was sentenced to 9 months jail suspended for two years.

She was also placed under an electronically tagged home curfew for three months from 8pm-6am every night.

And she was ordered to pay her victim £1,000 compensation plus £500 costs.

Passing sentence Judge Tabor said she came from a good, loving and supportive family and he could not understand why she behaved as she did.

He had been told there had been animosity between the two women for some time and he said he accepted the responsibility for that was 50-50.

The attack happened when both women were in a crowded lavatory together during the college ball.

Judge Tabor said "Your basis of plea is that you found yourself in a lavatory, a small crowded room. There had been ongoing hostility between you and your victim which was probably 50-50.

"She came into the lavatory while you were there. If you had gone looking for her your situation would be much worse.

"I accept you felt somewhat restricted and you lashed out. If you had lashed out knowing you still had a glass in your hand and you had done it deliberately we would have been ina very different ball park.

"But I sentence you on your basis of plea which was that this was a reckless mindless action caused by a degree of desperation at the circumstances you were in."

Mary Cowe, prosecuting, had told the court there was a lot of conflict between the defendant, the victim and the witnesses about how exactly the assault happened.

But witnesses had described the suddeness of the incident which happened in a very confined spaces when the two girls met up, she said.

Because of the animosity between them Miss Hudson had considered not even going to the ball she said.

It was at about 10.15pm when she went to the toilets and found Martin there that the incident happened, said Ms Cowe.

The attack left Miss Hudson with a one and a half inch cut to the left cheek which needed six stitches and a one and a half inch cut to the chin which required butterfly stitches.

Giles Nelson, defending, said the two women had fallen out and there had been a 'tension going on for some time.' 

They had behaved in an extremely immature way, he said.

Educationally, Martin had struggled and she was also immature for her age, he added.