South Tyneside mum given suspended jail term after she failed to comply with court order

Georgia Wells, 28, of Orchid Close, at West Harton, South Shields, twice failed to attend induction appointments with the Probation Service following her conviction for assault in September 2018.

The sentence was imposed after Wells attacked another woman, pulling out her hair extensions, South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court heard.

She has now been given a 12-week jail term, suspended for a year, after being hauled into the dock to admit her flagrant failure to comply with the order.

Wells had also failed to start paying off £700 she owed the court in fines and other costs, despite being allowed to do so at just £20 a month while receiving £800 a month in benefits.

District Judge Kathryn Meek told her: “The court has made several orders that you’ve ignored. You don’t get to pick and choose.”

The court heard Wells had missed a first induction appointment and been offered a second, which she had also missed, and had a poor record of compliance in general with the community order.

Val Bell, defending, said: “It doesn’t make good reading, the breach report.

“There’s some relevant background but it doesn’t excuse the fact that Miss Wells could have contacted the Probation Service to explain.

“I accept it’s a breach. There hasn’t been any further offending. She has shown she can stay out of trouble.”

The court heard Wells must also start to repay the money she owed, directly from her Universal Credit benefits payments.

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