
A WOMAN has been placed on a 12-month community correction order after she "cowardly" intimidated a person who had just been released from intensive care.
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Melissa Anne Tate, 53, of Lane Street, Blayney, pleaded guilty in Bathurst Local Court on November 2 to one count of intimidation.
Police documents tendered to the court for sentence said Tate and the victim had spent the morning together on October 27 this year after the victim was released from an intensive care unit.
As the victim went home, someone told them that Tate and another person had been arguing.
Sometime later that evening, the person Tate had allegedly been arguing with went to the rear of the victim's house and appeared anxious and distraught.
Tate went to the front door of the victim's residence about 9pm and asked if the person was inside.
The court heard the victim invited Tate in but the door was locked.
The victim then opened the door and tried to reason with Tate, who had become angry and began to say words to the effect of "I'm going to get you" with her fists clenched and raised.
The victim picked up a pair of fire pokers and held them across her chest in an attempt to push Tate out of the doorway as she felt threatened.
"Please, you're going too far," the victim said after she threw the fire pokers on the ground and tried to hug Tate.
"I'll get you, you [expletive]," Tate replied.
The victim continued to plead with Tate before they got her out the front door and called triple zero.
Police said they went to the victim's address a short time later where an electronic statement was given, before officers attended Tate's residence.
The court heard Tate, after some time, opened her front door and was seen to by NSW Ambulance personnel who were at the address following reports of a stabbing.
Tate refused any sort of medical treatment but showed NSW Ambulance she had not been stabbed.
Tate was then arrested and taken to Bathurst Police Station in the back of a caged vehicle.
Tate denied all allegations of intimidation during her interview with police, and said she didn't go inside the victim's residence.
Magistrate Elizabeth Ellis noted this was Tate's third matter of a similar nature and contemplated whether her "actions of a coward" warranted jail time.
"One more matter of this kind and I'll look at whether you are knocking on the door to jail," Magistrate Ellis said.
"Your behaviour, in my opinion, is even worse than if the victim was well. She had just got out of intensive care.
"Don't pick on someone in such a frail state, that is the action of a coward."
Tate was convicted of the charge.
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