Daniel Rees

Crystal O'Hara, 18, admitted assaulting a girl in a Colchester alleyway in 2024, repeatedly punching her and kicking her in the head while the victim's ex-boyfriend filmed the attack. The victim suffered bruising and ongoing anxiety, and said O'Hara's attempts to follow her on TikTok have compounded her distress. O'Hara's defence argued that the case should have been dealt with in youth court and questioned why the person who filmed and circulated the video was not charged. The magistrates adjourned the case for a pre-sentence report, with O'Hara due to return to court on October 29.

A Harwich woman, Janice Wood, was sentenced after admitting to driving while more than three times the legal alcohol limit and crashing into several parked vehicles. Members of the public intervened and removed her keys before police arrived and arrested her. Wood attributed the incident to emotional distress linked to her late mother’s birthday. Colchester magistrates imposed a fine, court costs, a victim surcharge and a driving ban of just over two years.

A woman from Harwich, Tempany Norris, received a five‑year prison sentence at Chelmsford Crown Court after admitting offences including taking and distributing indecent images of a child and sexually assaulting a child, following an earlier appearance at Colchester Magistrates’ Court.