A ‘recidivist’ nuisance who spat at a child, abused nurses, has been jailed
A woman who drunkenly abused and assaulted city workers, visitors, hospital employees and a child in Cairns throughout 2024 has been sentenced to nine months’ jail.
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A woman who drunkenly abused and assaulted city workers, visitors, hospital employees and a child in Cairns throughout 2024 has been sentenced to nine months’ jail.
Doreen Amelia (Milly) York, 61, pleaded guilty yesterday to 42 charges, including 14 counts of public nuisance, five of common assault, wilful exposure, wilful damage, obstructing police, failing to appear in court and contravening banning notices for the Cairns Safe Night Precinct.
Police prosecutions handed up a 22-page document in Cairns Magistrates Court, detailing York’s offences between July 2024 and December 2024, which included throwing stones to crack business windows, damaging property at Anglicare, swearing at a service station attendant in Manunda, demanding money from a bank where she was not a customer, and pushing a shopping trolley into the road near Cairns Central.
On at least three occasions, police were called to the Cairns Hospital where York was swearing and abusing staff, Magistrate Leanne Scoines told the court.
“She was described as being hostile towards security, swearing and abusing them, kicking the doors,” Ms Scoines said.
“On one occasion, the victim was an eight-year-old boy ... Ms York has looked at this child, made hacking noises and spat at this child - an eight-year-old at hospital with his mum. Spitting is a particularly degrading and nasty offence,” Ms Scoines said.
She also threatened innocent restaurant-goers at Dundees with a 50cm stick on another day, swinging at one person, then stabbing at another before exposing herself when the police arrived.
Ms Scoines said York was on a suspended prison sentence at the time of the offences.
She had assaulted police officers and corrective services staff in February 2024, the court was told, which was why she had been placed on a suspended sentence.
“The course of conduct exhibited by Ms York over a period of time is very concerning in a number of ways. Many, if not all of the victims, don’t appear to be people who are known to her,” Ms Scoines said.
“I’m concerned that she has habitually returned to the Cairns Hospital and she has become abusive towards staff, which would have been distressing and alarming for people seeking medical assistance or attending the hospital and other staff.
“There is a threat of her attending a variety of different places - banks, shopping centres, restaurants, hospitals and the like - and conducting herself in a way that would be very distressing to witness.”
Ms Scoines activated York’s four-month suspended sentence on the earlier charges and sentenced her to a head sentence of nine months’ jail on the new charges, with a parole release date of June 14.
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Originally published as A ‘recidivist’ nuisance who spat at a child, abused nurses, has been jailed
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