A 23-YEAR-OLD woman with a mild learning disability vandalised a public toilet in Irvinestown after assaulting two social workers who were trying to help her, Fermanagh Magistrates Court has heard.

Julie-Anne Fenton, of Woodview Crescent, Trillick, was charged with two counts of common assault and the criminal damage of a door and a soap dispenser belonging to Fermanagh and Omagh District Council on July 29, 2016.

Fenton entered guilty pleas at an earlier appearance before the court and a pre-sentence report was prepared in the case.

At her sentencing on Monday, the court heard that, on July 29, the defendant was travelling by car from Enniskillen to Londonderry with two social workers who were trying to find her new accommodation.

However, as they passed through Irvinestown, Fenton became “agitated”. She slapped the female social worker on the head and pulled her hair, while she punched the male social worker on the arm.

The defendant then exited the vehicle and ran off towards the public toilets at Brownhill Meadows car park. She vandalised a wooden door and a soap dispenser, causing £215 worth of damage.

After Fenton was arrested, she was conveyed to Enniskillen custody suite. During an interview that was conducted in the presence of an appropriate adult, the defendant seemed “easily distracted” and coughed and laughed.

Defending solicitor, Michael Fahy, told the court that his client had “complex underlying difficulties”.

The solicitor said that Fenton had a mild learning disability, but added that her diagnosis placed her “between two stools” and there was a lack of a facility in Northern Ireland that would cater for her needs.

Mr Fahy said that the social workers had been working very closely with the defendant and conceded that the incident was “no doubt very frightening” and could have had more serious consequences on the road.

The solicitor said that his client had spent the bulk of 2016 in custody in Hydebank, highlighting that the staff there were not trained in her needs.

He revealed that, after the incident last summer, the Western Trust decided to withdraw Fenton’s care package due to the risk of violence to their staff.

Urging the judge to show leniency, Mr Fahy said that it was “patently obvious” that Hydebank prison was not the appropriate place for the defendant to be placed.

Deputy district judge, John Rea, observed that the social workers in the car had been trying to help the defendant, and she had repaid their generosity by assaulting them.

Describing her actions as “particularly dangerous”, the judge said it was only good luck that her victims weren’t seriously injured or there wasn’t an accident.

Mr Rea told the court that “these people require to be protected” and imposed a three-month jail term, which he suspended for two years.

He also ordered the defendant to pay £50 restitution for the damage caused to the public toilet.