A neighbour from hell hit a homeowner with a rounders bat after being told, “You have rats!”
Charlotte Taylor, 41, was handed a suspended prison sentence after she hit her neighbour with the wooden bat.
She was charged after pleading guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm and possession of an offensive weapon in a public place.
The incident took place in May last year, Ms Taylor also admitted common assault against a man who was at the scene.
Exeter Magistrates’ Court heard the complainant was outside Ms Taylor’s property at around 7:30pm, taking photos of rubbish as her housing officer had advised her to do.
The victim then shouted up to Ms Taylor, “You’ve got rats!” At which point Ms Taylor exited the property with a rounders bat and struck the victim twice.
The assault was captured via mobile phone footage, and Ms Taylor struck the phone out of the complainant’s hand.
The police were then called and officers spoke to both parties.
Ms Taylor was arrested and taken into custody, while the victim attended the hospital and was told she had nerve damage in her leg.
Ms Taylor’s defence said: “This has been a two-year back-and-forth with both of them now potentially being evicted by the housing association.”
The court heard that the two parties were previously neighbours and that the victim had since been evicted.
The defence continued to explain that Ms Taylor’s children have been distressed by the victim in the past, and that had been calling them “c****.”
The defence added that by coming to the address and filming she as “aggravating the situation.”
“She understands that this behaviour was wrong. This was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”
Ms Taylor was handed 26 weeks in custody for assault occasioning actual bodily harm and 26 weeks for possession of an offensive weapon, to run concurrently.
The court also imposed a restraining order, and Ms Taylor was forced to pay £154 plus court fees of £85.