Attacked her ex-partner with knife and hammer

Belfast Magistrates’ Court heard 49-year-old Mary Catherwood went “crazy” and also wielded a bolt-studded baseball bat after the man found her in his home.

Catherwood, of Rosneath Gardens in Dundonald, was given a five-month suspended prison sentence.

She admitted common assault and two counts of possessing an offensive weapon in connection with the attack.

Prosecutors said the man returned home just after midnight on December 22 last year to discover his wallpaper torn and a bin bag at the front door.

He noticed Catherwood asleep on the sofa, but went upstairs without waking her to avoid any hassle.

About a minute later he heard footsteps on the stairs before she entered his bedroom with hands behind her back.

The man asked her to leave, but she pulled out the hammer and steak knife.

Prosecution lawyer Grainne McVeigh said: “The injured party reported that the defendant went crazy, yelling and swinging the hammer at him.

“He managed to grab her arm, at which point the defendant then went at him with a knife and he managed to grab that arm.” The man was able to wrestle her to the ground and throw both weapons away.

“At this point the defendant went for a small baseball bat with bolts in it and swung it at the injured party,” Mrs McVeigh said.

Other members of the man’s family arrived and told Catherwood to leave.

He also informed police that he believed it was a clear attempt to kill him.

Mrs McVeigh added: “He stated that he had suffered a stroke 10 years previous to this incident which left his left side weak, and he felt very afraid and vulnerable.”

During interviews Catherwood accepted going into the victim’s home, drinking and ripping off wallpaper with the knife. She denied that she would have used any of the weapons on the man.

Defence counsel Michael Boyd described his client’s drink-fuelled actions as “bizarre”. “Her behaviour on this particular evening was very concerning,” he told the court.

“She was adamant she had these items in her hands to frighten him.”

District Judge Fiona Bagnall said it was a “bad episode” which clearly crossed the threshold for a prison sentence. However, she suspended the five-month term for 18 months based on Catherwood’s previous clear record and guilty plea.

Mrs Bagnall warned: “She must be under no illusion, if there’s anything close to this behaviour again she will be in custody for some considerable time.”

An order was also made for destruction of the hammer.