Portsmouth mum jailed after biting and kicking Queen Alexandra Hospital staff as woman lay dying nearby

Mum-of-three Shannon-Leigh Williams, who was at Queen Alexandra Hospital for foot surgery, assaulted a nurse, attacked two security guards and put two other nurses in fear they would also be hurt.

Today at Portsmouth Magistrates’ Court the ‘extremely troubled young woman’ wept in the dock and repeatedly interrupted a judge who jailed her for 16 weeks.

The 25-year-old first pushed a TV at nurse Liliana Loureiro dealing her a ‘significant’ black eye and cut after being ‘aggressive, abusive and swearing’ at around 8.30-9am one day.

A day later, still in hospital, Williams was ‘aggressive and extremely unpleasant’ to nurse Sally Lewis, and senior sister Sandra Dewis who had been called in to assess her behaviour.

Williams also had been asked by Ms Dewis about reports she was smoking near oxygen tanks - posing ‘very real concerns about what could be catastrophic consequences,’ prosecutor Lucy Linington said.

‘That resulted in a further tirade of abuse against Ms Dewis,’ she said. ‘She was repeatedly swearing, aggressive.’

In her statement, Ms Dewis said: ‘This whole incident made me late off work and I’m upset because there was another female dying in a nearby cubicle.’

Miss Linington added Williams’ actions had a ‘significant impact’ on the woman’s death.

By lunchtime that day, January 13 last year, security staff were called. They tried to calm her down but had to physically remove her from the ward.

Guards Antony Rose and Neil Whitcher found Williams at a nursing station accusing staff of stealing her necklace and demanding tramadol medication.

‘For his efforts Mr Whitcher was bitten on the forearm’ drawing blood, the prosecutor said. He had to go to A&E and undergo ‘distressing’ blood tests for infectious diseases. Mr Rose was kicked three or four times to the knee.

Miss Linington said: ‘These incidents are incredibly serious.

‘These are members of QA Hospital staff, medical and otherwise, going about their jobs doing wonderful efforts and ultimately are trying their best to treat patients.’

Williams, of Greetham Street, Southsea, was immediately sectioned under the Mental Health Act on her arrest.

But a psychiatric report found no mental health reason she should act in this aggressive way, noting only a possible link to a personality disorder.

Sentencing, district judge David Robinson said: ‘These offences took place in a hospital which makes them of particular concern.

‘They were committed against hospital staff serving the public in front of vulnerable patients, one of whom was dying.’

He added: ‘In all the circumstances these offences are so serious that only custody can be justified.’

Just as she was led down to the cells Williams said: ‘I did not have any knowledge of what (was) going on.’

Lian Webster, mitigating, said Williams was extremely troubled, that there were ‘conflicting’ accounts in the psychiatric report, and there would be a ‘devastating impact’ for her going to jail.

‘She candidly accepts what is said and is extremely sorry,’ she said. ‘She would never again want to see herself behaving in such a way.’

Williams, who suffered a head injury while training to enter the Army, must pay £100 compensation to each of the three assault victims.

She admitted three assaults on emergency workers and two charges of using threatening, abusive, insulting words or behaviour causing harassment, alarm or distress.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

You can subscribe here for unlimited access to our online coverage, including Pompey, with 70 per cent fewer adverts for less than 20p a day.