A WOMAN from Rhyl who attacked a person she believed was seeing her partner has been spared jail.

Lauren Collier, 31, of East Parade, was sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment, suspended for a year-and-a-half, at Mold Crown Court today (October 17).

She had previously admitted a charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

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Prosecuting, Catherine Elvin told the court that, early on April 3, 2022, Collier was at the Rhyl home of Natalie Gribben, along with the victim, Candice Wilson, and others who were socialising there.

Ms Gribben’s brother, Donovan Dudley, was Collier’s partner at the time, but Collier had held a “grudge” against Ms Wilson for some time, believing she was becoming romantically involved with Mr Dudley.

That evening, Collier approached Ms Wilson and accused her of having slept with her partner; when others refuted this, she replied: “I don’t care; I don’t like her.”

Collier, unprovoked and under the influence of cocaine and alcohol, then threw a punch at Ms Wilson, hitting her in her left temple.

Ms Wilson stood up, and initially tried to move away to call her partner to pick her up, but Collier then grabbed her by her hair and pulled her to the bottom of the stairs.

Witnesses described Collier kicking Ms Wilson to her stomach on multiple occasions, before a “scuffle” ensued in a hallway.

The attack left Ms Wilson with bruising to her left eye, a clump of hair pulled out, a fracture to the fifth metatarsal of her left foot.

Defending Collier, who had 31 previous convictions for 47 offences, Jade Tufail conceded that her client has a “very difficult and very sorry history”.

Collier’s “toxic” relationship with Mr Dudley has now ended, and he had provoked her himself that night about her concerns.

Ms Tufail said Collier has suffered from a “lifelong problem of drinking”, but is “all too keen to avoid” prison, where she has not been for 10 years.

But she said Collier is “not a lost cause”, having been co-operating with a support worker, and asked for the court to afford her “one last opportunity to engage with the help that she so badly needs”.

Sentencing, Judge Niclas Parry told Collier she is an “offending machine” with a “dreadful” record of previous convictions.

He ordered Collier to complete a 35-day programme, and 40 days’ rehabilitation activity requirements.

Collier will appear in court before Judge Parry for monthly reviews, due to her “poor” compliance with previous orders.

She was also handed a restraining order, prohibiting her from contacting Ms Wilson for five years, and will pay a statutory surcharge.

Judge Parry told her: “You look for trouble. This was a wholly unprovoked attack by a person under the influence of cocaine and alcohol.

“This lady was a totally innocent person, minding her business, and has suffered because of your behaviour.”