News Pensioner attacked by teen
A well-known Carlton pensioner suffered a broken nose and two black eyes after being pushed by a local teenager into the road in front of an oncoming car, a court was told on Tuesday.
The 14-year-old girl, who attacked retired headteacher Miss Beryl Barber in broad daylight in High Street, Carlton, cannot be identified for legal reasons.
York Youth Court heard how after being pushed hard from behind the 72-year-old woman was left lying in a pool of her own bood.
The court heard how a group of teenage girls, including the defendant, had been taunting Miss Barber, affectionately regarded in the village as being something of an eccentric and often seen walking around picking up rubbish.
The group had been throwing small stones at the pensioner as she did just that, but when the 5ft 10inch victim finally retaliated by throwing one small stone back at the group on the afternoon of October 22 last year, the defendant reacted by rushing up to the frail woman and shoving her with such force that she fell into the road, banging her face on the ground.
Mr Martin Hawes, prosecuting, told how the female driver of an oncoming car saw the pensioner being pushed with "great force" in the back by the teenager, using both forearms, and saw the woman fall into the road.
Another witness described seeing a group of around six teenage girls taunting Miss Barber, who then fell face first into the road. He described seeing her face "bounce" off the floor with the impact.
Via a video recording Miss Barber told the court that she was a little confused as to what actually happened, but described the teeangers annoying her. She said that she had been walking along High Street when she felt a push in her back and ended up on the floor, banging her nose and with blood spilling everywhere.
The teenager, who pleaded guilty at a previous hearing to assaulting Miss Barber, was said by Miss Jo Murray, mitigating, to be "appalled" at what she had done.
Miss Murray said that her client conceded that it was a "nasty assault" and had since expressed great remorse for what she had done.
Adding that the teenager had retalitated at Miss Barber's throwing a stone which struck one of her friends, Miss Murray said that her client, although on police bail at the time of the assault for a totally different and unconnected matter, had no previous convictions.
Sentencing the 14-year-old to a 12-month referral order the chairman of the bench, Mr Ian Bleasby, told her: "We regard this as a very serious assault on a vulnerable lady."
Although the referral order will not count as a criminal record for the purposes of future employment for the defendant, the teenager was also orderd to pay her victim £500 in compensation.
Published on 13th March 2008 in News.
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