Jilted lover cleared of assault

Court says woman acted in self defence when she punched love rival

A JILTED woman went to her love rival’s home and punched her full in the face.

But after hearing the full details of the tangled love triangle, Newbury magistrates cleared 24-year-old Daina Hutchings of Penwood, Highclere, of the single charge of assault against her after ruling she had acted in self-defence when she struck Rosie Wells.

The man at the centre of the row between the two women was Jamie Smith – the father of Miss Wells’ daughter.

When Mr Smith ended his relationship with Miss Wells and started seeing Miss Hutchings, the women started sending each other a series of insulting Facebook messages. Mr Smith then resumed his relationship with Miss Wells.

In one message read out to the court, Miss Wells called Miss Hutchings a “psycho” and a “twisted little skank”, something Miss Wells said was in retaliation to previous messages between the pair.

The messages culminated in Miss Hutchings visiting Ms Wells’ address in Newbury during the evening of March 28.

Michael Jones, prosecuting, claimed that Miss Hutchings had gone there that night with the intention of starting a fight with Miss Wells.

But Miss Hutchings said that Miss Wells “was coming towards me with a bright red face and her fists clenched. My instant reaction was to hit her.

“It was not like I went there to psychotically beat her to pieces. I did not go there with the intention of doing serious damage or fight at all.

“I just wanted it to stop but I shouldn’t have gone there in the first place. This has stopped me living my life for nearly a year now.”

And Steve Molloy, defending Miss Hutchings, said: “She has reacted instantly to a perceived threat. After landing a single punch she did not fight further, she ran away.

“That is the reaction of someone who is acting in self-defence, not the reaction of someone who has the intention of starting a fight.”

The court heard that in one message prior to the incident Miss Wells said to Miss Hutchings,: “If you’ve got something to say, say it to my face, you know where I live.”

This, Mr Molloy said, was Miss Hutching’s invitation to go to Miss Wells’ home.

Giving evidence at the trial, however, Miss Wells denied inviting Miss Hutchings over – and said she was shocked to see her on the evening in question.

Miss Wells added that she was sitting at home in her pyjamas with Mr Smith and her children, when Miss Hutchings arrived with a female friend.

She told the court: “I shouted Jamie, your psycho ex-girlfriend is at the door.

“That is when Daina stepped through the door and punched me in the face. She punched me in my nose and my mouth.

“My daughter was really upset so I went in to comfort her but I could still hear them outside, so I called the police.”

The court heard that a Facebook message, sent to Miss Hutchings from Miss Wells’ account after the incident, said “the fat lip was worth it” to see Miss Hutchings “spend a night in the cells”.

Magistrates told Miss Hutchings: “Having considered all these matters we do believe you acted in self-defence.”