A 56-year old woman who drunkenly spat in the face of a key worker during the Covid-19 pandemic has been jailed for nine months.
Pauline Burns, from Donegall Street in Belfast, was told that her actions on April 4 caused fear of infection not just to the woman she spat on - who works as a cleaner in a Belfast hospital - but also to the woman's family.
Described in Belfast Crown Court as a woman with a history of alcoholism, Burns admitted a charge of common assault, and appeared at the remote hearing via a videolink with Hydebank.
Judge David McFarland said anyone spitting into someone's face during the Covid-19 could expect a "robust penalty" to protect those who "work on the front line providing service and protection to others."
The mother-of-three had just left her west Belfast home at 6pm to deliver food to her father who was self-isolating when she was approached in the street by a drunken Burns, who she knew.
The woman refused Burns's request for a hug, politely asking her to keep her distance, at which point Burns verbally abused her then repeatedly spat on her face and body.
She was concerned about Covid-19 infection and immediately returned home to shower.
Burns, who had 201 previous convictions including previous assaults, was arrested at her hostel the following morning and admitted she had been drunk but could not remember the incident.
The court heard after being released on bail Burns "came to police attention a short time later" and was remanded back into custody.
The judge said her "appalling" criminal record "focus on her disorderly conduct and drunkeness" and her life "for the past 15 to 20 years has been a revolving door between prison and hostels".
"This incident took place two weeks into the restrictions placed on the community concerning Covid-19, and her actions would have been motivated by an intention to cause fear of serious harm, including the transmission of Covid-19... extended to infection of the victim's family, given the highly contagious nature of the disease."
