A WOMAN who spat in a police officer’s eye after downing two litres of gin has been jailed for 13 months.

Jamie Brown was arrested at Bradford Royal Infirmary after reports that she had assaulted a patient in the reception area at 2am on April 20. Prosecutor Philip Adams told Bradford Crown Court that Brown was drunk and aggressive.

The allegation that she had assaulted a patient was never proceeded with, but Brown was taken in a police van to the city’s Trafalgar House Police Station where she was swearing and shouting racial abuse at the arresting officers.

She kicked out at an officer and had to be restrained and held down on the floor, the court was told.

Brown then kicked backwards at a second officer in the booking in area, hitting his shin and kneecaps with her heel while still shouting and swearing.

She then spat directly in a female police constable’s eye, Mr Adams said.

Brown, 25, of Leeds Road, Bradford, told the police she had drunk two litres of gin and had no recollection of what she had done. The officer she spat at was left disgusted and needing regular blood tests over a six-month period.

Brown pleaded guilty to two offences of assaulting a police constable as an emergency worker and a count of racially aggravated harassment, alarm or distress.

The court heard she had four previous convictions for ten offences, including assaulting police officers, malicious communication, battery and making off without payment.

Brown’s barrister, Caroline Abraham, handed in character references and letters of apology from her client.

Miss Abraham said Brown’s offending was inextricably linked to her misuse of alcohol.

She had since stopped drinking and was deeply remorseful.

“She is making great strides in turning her life around,” Miss Abraham said.

Brown wept in the dock as the Recorder of Bradford, Judge Jonathan Durham Hall QC, labelled the offences “deeply unpleasant and nasty behaviour,” both at BRI and at Trafalgar House Police Station.

“You were consumed with rage and anger and abuse and full of gin,” Judge Durham Hall said. Brown had served 15 weeks in prison before and no lessons had been learned.

“Police officers, ambulance staff and fire officers are now routinely the subject of abuse and disregard. The message is: ‘Those who behave in a disruptive and disrespectful way and hurt our valiant emergency workers will be dealt with robustly,” the judge warned.