A woman who stabbed her neighbour in a row over noise in a block of flats was jailed for 22 months yesterday.
Inverness Sheriff Court was told that the knife was left sticking out of Arron Campbell’s back after he was stabbed twice between the night of March 17 andthe early hours of March 18 by Maureen Mackenzie, 49.
Defence solicitor Clare Russell told Sheriff Margaret Neilson that her client was under the influence of illicit substances at the time.
She went on: “Her recollection therefore of events is extremely vague. But this is an escalation in her offending behaviour. She advised social workers that she had ‘lost it’ and she had demonstrated remorse.”
However Sheriff Neilson told Mackenzie of Lochalsh Road, Inverness: “The offence is so serious that only a custodial sentence is appropriate.”
Mackenzie at the time of the offence lived with her former co-accused, Brian Robertson, in a ground floor flat in Diriebught Court in Inverness.
At an earlier court, she admitted assaulting Mr Campbell to his injury by striking him repeatedly with a knife and striking his head with a bottle or similar object. Sentence had been deferred for a background report.
The court was told that Mr Campbell got involved in an argument over noise with Mackenzie in her flat where a number of people had been drinking.
Fiscal depute Michelle Molley said that Mr Campbell returned to his own flat only to be followed by Mackenzie who flipped over a coffee table before producing a knife.
“She was shouting at Mr Campbell and screaming at other witnesses. The altercation moved into the stairwell where the sound of smashing glass was overheard.
“He returned to the flat and a knife was observed protruding from his left shoulder blade. There was also blood from a head injury.”
The court heard that attempts were made to stop the bleeding with a t-shirt and then a heated knife blade.
Police and an ambulance were called and Mr Campbell required six external and two internal stitches to the puncture wounds.