A woman has been ordered to stay away from her former partner after she smashed him over the head with a tennis racquet.
Caroline Monteith, 34, appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court and admitted striking her former boyfriend with the racquet after the two had got into a heated argument over child support.
The court heard Monteith also attacked a Lidl worker in a separate incident by punching him and attempting to bite him.
And, in a further incident, Monteith shouted and threatened a neighbour while she repeatedly kicked the woman’s front door.
Fiscal depute Alan Townsend told the court that on September 20 2020 at a flat in Aberdeen’s Sandilands Drive, Monteith’s neighbour became aware of someone violently kicking her front door.
She also heard Monteith shout “I’m going to smash your face in”.
The incident lasted around five minutes before the woman informed Monteith that she had called the police.
Mr Townsend said that during another incident, on July 17 last year, Monteith and her partner were having an argument over child support payments when “without warning” she struck the man on the head with a tennis racket.
The fiscal depute then described a further incident from July 22 this year in which Monteith was approached by a staff member of Lidl on the Lang Stracht because he suspected her of being a shoplifter.
While in the alcohol aisle of the supermarket, the Lidl worker tried to take a shopping trolley containing bottles of alcohol from her and she repeatedly punched him on the head before attempting to bite him.
She then made off with the alcohol.
Monteith pleaded guilty to one charge of assault against the Lidl worker and another of stealing a quantity of alcohol.
She admitted two further charges of assault with a tennis racquet and behaving in a threatening manner towards her neighbour.
Sheriff says he ‘seriously’ considered prison term
Defence agent Christopher Maitland told the court that Monteith has been “struggling with issues throughout her life”.
He added: “Over the last few years she has tried to stay out of trouble but has used alcohol and drugs as a support mechanism.”
Sheriff Graham Buchanan told Monteith that he “did seriously consider” imposing a custodial sentence.
“But I do take into account that you are remorseful and are aware of what you have done.”
As an alternative to a prison sentence, Sheriff Buchanan sentenced Monteith, of Burnbrae Crescent, Aberdeen, to a community payback order with supervision for 12 months and ordered her to carry out 120 hours of unpaid work.
He also put a non-harassment order in place barring her from approaching her former partner for three years.
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