Six months jail for Derry woman who bit PSNI officer

A Derry woman who bit a police officer has been jailed at the city's Magistrate's Court for a series of drug, disorderly offences and assaulting a police officer occasioning actual bodily harm.

Yasmin Anderson (23), of Ballymagowan Avenue in the Creggan area of the city, admitted the offences which occurred on December 9 last year and July 8 this year.

The court heard that on December 9 last, police came across Anderson in the Clon Elagh area and she was 'highly intoxicated.'

She told police she was looking for her boyfriend and police took her to an address but there was no one there.

The court was told police tried to find someone to take her in but they were unsuccessful.

When they offered to take her to an address she became obstructive and abusive.

Police took her to Altnagelvin Hospital and while there she shouted at police and despite warnings persisted.

When police went to detain her she bit an officer on the thigh breaking the skin.

The officer had to receive a tetanus jab and have blood tests.

The court then heard that on July 8 police observed a group of people around a car driven by the defendant in John Street.

They returned and saw Anderson and the others standing around the vehicle and searched them.

A quantity of cannabis was found on Anderson.

Defence solicitor Keith Kyle said that his client accepted that the courts took a dim view of offences in the hospital. 

He said it was clear that the custody threshold had been passed.

The solicitor told the court that Anderson had asked for her bail to be revoked as she was falling under the influence of 'negative peers.'

Anderson was jailed for six months.