A WIRRAL woman who clocked up seven Bail Act offences has been given a suspended jail sentence after she was attacked in prison.

Ellen Finn appeared at Liverpool Crown Court last week having spent the past month in custody following an unsuccessful bail application.

Finn, aged 27, of Gaytree Court, Beechwood, Birkenhead, pleaded guilty to a total of 16 offences and was sentenced to eight months' imprisonment suspended for two years.

Judge David Marshall Evans, QC, told her: "You have committed a substantial number of offences over a substantial period of time. The serious part of your behaviour, in many respects, is that you simply failed to surrender and when arrested you were granted bail repeatedly, which is something which troubles me.

"In relation to these matters you have spent about seven weeks in prison, which has not been a particularly pleasant experience for you. You express a determination to avoid a resumption of your previous lifestyle and have told me you have somewhere to go to live.

"In these circumstances, your particular experience in prison has created exceptional circumstances allowing me to suspend the balance of your sentence."

Miss Teresa Loftus, prosecuting, told the court that Finn's offending spanned May 1995 to February this year. The charges included seven shop-lifting offences in Liverpool and Birkenhead, assaulting a store security guard and obstructing police by giving a false name.

Finn's counsel, Mr Keith Sutton, said that through no fault of her own, Finn was the subject of an appalling attack by other inmates in Styall prison. It may well be that one of the reasons for the attack was her determination not to fall into the misuse of illegal drugs again, he said.

The thefts were committed to fund her habit but she was now drug free and had expressed her determination to stay that way on every occasion, said Mr Sutton.

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