A 56-year-old woman has been charged with recklessly inflicting grievous bodily harm and choking. Photo: Michelle Kroll Region Media.
CONTENT WARNING: This article contains distressing content.
A woman was allegedly choked by a stranger on the street before her attacker later reportedly grabbed a four-week-old baby out of his mother’s pram and threw him onto the ground.
The 56-year-old female defendant, arrested over the alleged attacks, was originally taken to a mental health ward before returning to the ACT Magistrates Court this week where she was told she would return to the ward for the second time.
It is alleged that the defendant first approached, then choked a woman near Ijong Street in Braddon on the afternoon of 24 January.
Shortly afterwards, the mother was pushing her four-week-old baby in a pram on the same street when the defendant allegedly blocked their path, grabbed the baby from the pram and threw him to the ground.
It is understood that the baby received a minor brain bleed from the alleged assault and was released from hospital later that month.
Meanwhile, the defendant was charged with recklessly inflicting grievous bodily harm and faced the Magistrates Court on 29 January before she was taken for a mental health assessment.
She remained in the mental health ward for nearly three weeks before returning to court on Wednesday (18 February) where the court heard she also faced a fresh charge of choking.
The court heard health professionals had recommended she be returned to the adult mental health unit, which Magistrate Glenn Theakston said was “fairly unusual”.
Her lawyer, Legal Aid’s Gillian Bilton, said her efforts to obtain more information from her client about why she wanted to return to the ward had been somewhat fruitless.
But she said she had been told earlier this week that more investigations were to take place into her client’s possible medical conditions.
“There seems to be a clear desire from the adult mental health unit for her to return to that unit for more support or treatment,” Ms Bilton said.
Prosecutor Nathan Deakes said he had a neutral position on the recommendation, but if bail were sought, he would oppose it.
Magistrate Theakston said the allegations were serious and he was reluctant to return the defendant to the ward as she had already spent almost three weeks there.
But he said he would make the order for her to be returned, as the professionals had reported there was an ongoing need for treatment. They expected she would be readmitted to the ward if she was released to the community.
The magistrate also said there was no information to suggest she was a risk of escaping the hospital.
The woman was returned to the mental health ward and will face court again at a later date.
Region has not named her while the second assessment is underway.
If you or someone you know needs help, you can contact:
Lifeline’s 24-hour crisis support line – 13 11 14
Suicide Call Back Service – 1300 659 467
Kids Helpline – 1800 551 800 or kidshelpline.com.au
MensLine Australia – 1300 789 978 or mensline.org.au.
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