Holbeach woman punched officer after driving into ditch

Magistrates at Boston have been told that a 27 year old Holbeach woman panicked after being arrested and put into a police van and punched a police officer on the cheek.

Rebecca Duggan of Market Rasen Way, who admitted the offence, was said to have driven her car into a ditch in Boston on May 21 and when police came, gave a positive breath test.

Lee Shepherd, prosecuting, said she was placed in the back of a police van and paramedics were called to check her condition because of the circumstances of the incident, but she started to bang her head against the wall of the van.

He said officers moved to stop her and had to move her arm to stop her holding the door, when she punched one of the officers on the cheek.

He said she later tested negative to the breath test and so there was no charge relating to that.

Mitigating, Tony Freitas said Duggan had panicked when she was placed in the back of the van and became ‘very emotional’ and was ‘banging her arms about’.

He said she was ashamed and embarrassed about what had happened but had not deliberately hit the officer, to whom she apologised.

She was fined £300 and ordered to pay £50 compensation to the officer and £119 in court costs and charges.