THE HERALD FRIDAY FEBRUARY 3 2017
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9 News Woman’s bail breach ends in remand A 61-YEAR-OLD woman from
Newport appeared at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on Monday (Jan 30) to face charges of assault against her mother, and breaching her bail conditions. Deidre Mendus Edwards, of Steeple
View, Church Street, pleaded not guilty to the charge of assault, but admitted the breach to the court. Prosecutor Ellie Morgan said: “The
defendant had been convicted of common assault on her mother in November and was sentenced in December. “On December 19, she went to her
mother’s house. Her mother is 95, soon to be 96, and said she was at home and noticed her daughter approaching her house. She sat in her armchair and her daughter came in on crutches.” Ms Morgan explained that Edwards
told her mother that a cheque of £5,000 her mother had written her in May 2016 needed to be re-written, as she was unable to cash it due to the poor quality of the writing. Ms Morgan said: “She wrote a new
one, and wrote two others - one of £40 for a debt that Edwards owed, and another of £435 to cover the court costs and fines. She told Edwards that she wouldn’t be getting any more money out of her, which she thinks annoyed Edwards. “She says Edwards was in the house
for an hour and a half, in which time she became angry and aggressive, waving her
crutches around.” Ms Morgan said Edwards’ mother
claims she was waving her crutches around while she was sat in her chair, and described her as becoming ‘totally out of control’, and that she was too scared to move or say anything as she was frightened Edwards would hit her with her crutch. “She said she tried not to upset her,
as she knew she couldn’t defend herself,” said Ms Morgan. The court heard that Edwards is the
second youngest out of four children, and lives the closest to her mother. Ms Morgan explained that police were involved when one of Edwards’ siblings called them, after finding her mother in the chair backwards on the floor. Ms Morgan explained: “Edwards
was charged on January 22 and put on bail, with the condition to not contact her mother. Her mum had made a statement, saying she mostly manages on her own, but had social care to help her to bed. “On Saturday (Jan 28), the defendant
went to her mother’s house in the afternoon and her mother saw her at the front window. The door was locked, but she let Edwards in. She said that Edwards said she resented being treated like an animal and a criminal, and asked her mother to tell the court that it was because of the state of her mental health. “Her mother agreed to speak to somebody, and agreed to meet Edwards
the following day. Edwards said she would send a taxi for her, and the reason for their meeting was to try to sort the problem out without involving the court.” Ms Morgan continued: “Edwards’
mother did not know what time the taxi would arrive so was waiting with her coat and handbag when the police turned up. The officer asked her where she was going, and she said ‘I probably won’t be going now’. “The officers thought it was
Edwards’ mother’s decision to meet, but after further investigation realised the defendant had been there. The officers feel that the contact with the defendant had greatly influenced her mother due to the way she was speaking to them. “The bail conditions are put in
place to preserve evidence, but this was breached.” Edwards was arrested on Saturday at
3.15pm; however, said that nothing had been arranged with regards to taxis and meeting. Ms Morgan added: “Her mother was
ready to go when the officer came. In her mother’s mind, given her age, she doesn’t want to lose contact with her daughter, and Edwards is taking advantage of her mother’s instinct.” Defence solicitor Katy Hanson told
the court: “Edwards is 61-years-old, and prior to the end of last year had no previous convictions. The proceedings have weighed heavily on her.
“She was on bail from May to
December 2016, and made no contact with her mother in that time, so she is clearly able to abide by bail conditions. When Edwards was arrested, her mother made it clear in her instructions that she didn’t wish for a restraining order and wanted to have a relationship with her daughter. “Edwards had received a card from
her mother saying she missed her. She went round feeling very emotional. She denies that threats were made and waving crutches around.” Ms Hanson asked the court to take
into account that she went seven months without breaching her bail, and has no experience with the justice system. She said: “She has become estranged from her family, and she heard last week her mother was very upset about the
proceedings: She didn’t want her mother being worried about things.” Ms Hanson said that Edwards says
she went to visit her mother for five minutes on January 25, not January 28, but said: “It doesn’t matter what date; a breach is a breach.” She also said Edwards believes her
mother got confused and said there was no talk of taxis or meeting up, and says her mother was waiting for something that wasn’t going to happen. Magistrates said they had heard
the circumstances, but said there are substantial ground to believe she would be likely to cause mental or physical injury or interfere with witnesses, and was therefore remanded in custody until her trial on Wednesday (Feb 8), where she will appear via video link.
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