A drunk woman stabbed her partner after believing he was cheating on her.
Julie Gibbons, 56, and her partner, Paul Harrison had rowed earlier in the evening of August 2, 2020, after she accused him of being unfaithful to her, which he denied. He made them both some food at her home in St Helens, and gave her a knife to cut it but she refused the food and he took the knife back to the kitchen drawer.
By this point Gibbons had drunk almost three bottles of wine and continued to accuse Mr Harrison of cheating. Cheryl Mottram, prosecuting at Liverpool Crown Court on Tuesday, May 24, said he then grabbed the knife and placed it on top of the cupboard saying "Go on, do what you want with it".
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Ms Mottram said: "In response, she picked it up and stabbed him on the front and side of his chest. He managed to push her away and call for an ambulance. On hearing the nature of the incident the police were called."
When officers arrived Gibbons was screaming and “making no sense at all”, said Miss Mottram. She was arrested and when interviewed she accepted the couple were both alcoholics and she could not remember what had happened.
Mr Harrison’s puncture wounds were found to be minor and they were cleaned and stapled. Liverpool Crown Court heard the couple had been together for a number of years and had difficulties with alcohol consumption.
Gibbons of O’Sullivan Crescent, St Helens, pleaded guilty to assault causing actual bodily harm. Helen Longworth, defending, said that the defendant has no previous convictions and had pleaded guilty.
She has already sought help for her alcohol problem and is being helped by a supportive family. She added: "Her goal is abstinence."
The judge, Recorder Daniel Prowse sentenced her to 15 months imprisonment suspended for 15 months. He also imposed 25 days rehabilitation activities, 80 hours unpaid work and a six month alcohol treatment requirement.
He told her: "No doubt influenced by the argument and alcohol you took the catastrophic decision to take that knife and stab him."
Recorder Prowse told Gibbons, who had originally been charged with wounding, that she was fortunate the injuries were not more serious. “The consequences could have been catastrophic,” he said.
He said that he accepted she was remorseful and wanted to work with the probation service and alcohol treatment services.
