A BIRKENHEAD woman who attacked the licensee of her local pub narrowly escaped jail.

Lisa Kane, aged 28, struck him in the face with a bottle, causing injuries needing a total of 10 stitches and leaving him permanently scarred.

Liverpool Crown Court heard that she also bit him on the left arm as he was trying to eject her husband and others from the premises.

Judge David Mackay told Kane, who stood weeping in the dock, that she deserved to go to prison not because she was wicked but because of what she had done. However, he added, that sending her to prison would be like "pitching you into the shark pool of life."

Ordering her to carry out 200 hours' community service, he said she was a respectable woman who was six months pregnant and unlikely to offend again.

Kane, of Northbrooke Way, had pleaded guilty to wounding Mark Deponeo on January 31.

Mr Ian Haselhurst, prosecuting, said that the incident occurred in the Pelican public house in Houghton Road, Woodchurch. Mr Deponeo began ejecting Kane's husband and others after a fight and Kane, who was drunk, intervened and bit the licensee on the arm.

He pushed her away and she hit him in the face with a beer bottle, which fortunately did not break, he said.

Defence counsel Miss Charlotte Kenny said that Kane had been on good terms with the landlord and his wife. She was astounded that she had been capable of such violence and was extremely ashamed. It had been a spontaneous reaction and she had not acted rationally.

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.