A WOMAN who drank six litres of wine before assaulting her boyfriend has been jailed for 20 weeks.

Claire Louise Brewitt, of Darcy Road, Selby, was already the subject of a community order when the incident took place on Monday, January 23. Brewitt had been released from prison in November for a similar offence.

Selby magistrates heard Brewitt, 29, usually drank about two litres of wine, but had consumed up to six litres when she got into an argument with Michael Gill in the kitchen of her mother’s home.

Kathryn Reeve, prosecuting, said Brewitt had been in a relationship with Mr Gill since last year, and the couple had argued over accusations of infidelity.

The court heard Brewitt threatened to hit Mr Gill if he refused to “shut up”, then punched him in the face and slapped him, before her mother ran into the room and said: “You’ve slapped him, I can see the marks”.

Mr Gill tried to phone the police, but was allegedly prevented by Brewitt. He left the house and returned to his home, where he called the police.

Brewitt denied hitting Mr Gill when she was arrested, but said in interview: “I admit I slapped him, but he was right in my face”.

When asked what she could have done instead of slapping him, she said “headbutt him”.

Keith Haggarty, for Brewitt, said she had a history of similar offences, and “clearly she has demons from her past which have led to her trying to hide it with alcohol”.

A representative from the probation service said Brewitt had a history of missing appointments, and had been seen drinking during breaks in the hearing.

She said: “She knows she needs to address her alcohol abuse, but people can’t make her do that. She needs to be motivated.

“She has continued to drink during the period of time she has been in court today. That leads me to suspect that the motivation is minimal.”