A mum has been left scared of bumping into her blade-carrying daughter after being stalked and harassed by her.
Elizabeth Atkinson has left her mother so distressed and fearful she has finally cut off contact, having given her several chances in the past. So when she contacted her again asking to talk, she refused, prompting a flurry of calls and voicemails, including saying she would go to her home.
She also rang police, saying she had blades and would harm her mum or anyone who got in her way. When she was found by officers, she had a packet of blades in her bra.
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Newcastle Crown Court heard she had also, separately, send police and ambulance staff on a three-hour "wild goose chase" after reporting that she had taken an overdose of paracetamol and giving a series of locations where she claimed to be but was not. No trace of paracetamol was found in her system when she was taken to hospital
Now the 28-year-old, formerly of Kingston Park but latterly of Denmark Street, Byker, Newcastle, has been jailed for 63 weeks. Referring to the stalking offence, Omar Ahmad, prosecuting, said: "The victim is the defendant's mother, who describes ongoing issues with her which have caused her distress."
On March 27 the victim got a call from an unknown number and recognised her daughter's voice and Atkinson asked to speak to her to "work it out" but the victim said no and hung up.
Mr Ahmad added: "She then got multiple calls from the same number which she didn't answer and the defendant left voicemails saying she missed her and wanted to see her and would attend her home." Atkinson, who had borrowed a friend's phone in a bar in Newcastle to make the calls, was subject to bail conditions forbidding her from contacting her mother at the time.
Just after 7.30pm that night, Atkinson called 999 and said she had blades and was going to harm her mother and anyone who got in the way. She was later found and arrested and had self-harmed. She told police she had a pack of blades in her bra.
Her mother said in a victim impact statement: "The ongoing issues with Beth are causing so much upset and distress and I'm shocked by her actions. The impact on me and my family is very straining.
"I'm so hurt by her. I'm the only one who supported her and I feel betrayed by her, even when I've given her the benefit of the doubt on so many occasions.
"I've had to change my schedule and lifestyle and I'm constantly scared I'm going to bump into her and I'm frightened she might act violently towards me.
"I've considered speaking to my boss about working from home because she knows my schedule, where I work and my routine and I don't want to bump into her. I'm in fear of her and how she might behave towards me.
"If she's released from custody I will have no choice but to change my lifestyle because I believe she will continue to stalk and harass me. I wish she would stop.
"I don't believe she has any respect for the law. I can't cope with it any more."
Atkinson pleaded guilty to stalking, sending a malicious communication and having a blade in relation to that day and also admitted breaching a criminal behaviour order on March 3. That order had been made in June 2020 and prohibited her from making calls to the emergency services which she knew to be false or didn't believe to be true.
In breach of that, she called the emergency services saying she had taken an overdose of paracetamol tablets then sent police and the ambulance service on a "wild goose chase" for three hours, telling them she was in a series of locations and then when they turned up she was not there.
She was eventually found on the Redheugh Bridge and when she was taken to hospital, no trace of paracetamol was found in her system, which she claimed was because she had vomited.
Atkinson, 28, has 49 previous convictions, including for harassing her mother, five offences involving nuisance calls and 15 for having blades or weapons. She has also breached the criminal behaviour order twice before.
Jonathan Pigford, defending, said: "This is the first time she will be on her own as far as her mother is concerned. She is immature. From today she needs to move on and be independent and be a lot more mature and resilient and will not be able to fall back on the support of her mother for support, whether that is financial or emotional."
He added that the calls to the emergency service are described by the probation service as a "dysfunctional coping strategy".
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