A woman in Darlington faces legal consequences after threatening a nurse with a knife during a hospital visit
Darlington: So, there was this incident at Darlington Memorial Hospital where a woman named Sarah Hunter got really upset while waiting for treatment. She was feeling the pressure of the delays, and things escalated quickly.
According to the court, security had to step in because she was acting out. They even found two knives on her! Can you believe that? She was being super aggressive towards a nurse, and eventually, the police had to get involved.
The prosecutor, Shaun Dryden, shared that when the nurse came back after a bit, Sarah made some pretty serious threats, saying she was going to kill her. It was alarming, and she even mentioned having a knife again.
After a search, they found those two small knives, and one witness thought she was holding something dangerous. The police ended up recovering a flick knife from her too. It was a tense situation for sure.
Sarah, who lives on Columbia Street in Darlington, ended up pleading guilty to having a bladed article and making threats to kill. This all happened back in September last year.
Her lawyer mentioned that Sarah has been dealing with mental health issues for a long time and is getting treatment. She claimed Sarah didn’t even realize she had the knives on her and that her behavior was just a result of her frustration.
The judge, Tom Mitchell, gave her an eight-month prison sentence, but it’s suspended for 21 months. He pointed out that being frustrated in a busy hospital is something everyone experiences these days.
He made it clear that threatening someone is a serious matter, even if she didn’t actually pull out a knife. As part of her sentence, Sarah has to attend rehabilitation sessions and do some community service.
