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SINGAPORE \u2013 During a heated argument with her mother over household chores, a woman slapped and punched the older woman on her face and threatened her with a penknife. <\/p>\n
She was sentenced to 10 weeks\u2019 jail by a district court on Dec 16 for her actions, after pleading guilty to one count of criminal intimidation and one count of voluntarily causing hurt. <\/p>\n
Another two charges for harassment and breaching a Personal Protection Order were taken into consideration for sentencing. <\/p>\n
Both women cannot be named as they are protected under the Women\u2019s Charter. The court heard that the older woman was granted a personal protection order against her daughter on Oct 1, 2014. <\/p>\n
Court records showed that the 39-year-old woman lived with her mother, 59, in the latter\u2019s apartment, as it was near her son\u2019s school. <\/p>\n
Investigations showed that the woman began arguing with her mother at about 1pm on Oct 10, after having consumed alcohol the night before. <\/p>\n
At that time, her two children and a friend were also in the apartment. <\/p>\n
As the argument escalated, the woman moved towards her mother and punched and slapped her on the left side of her face. <\/p>\n
She then grabbed a penknife from the coffee table beside them and placed the tip of it on her mother\u2019s chest. The penknife\u2019s blade was not exposed. <\/p>\n
When her mother did not engage, the woman went into the kitchen to reach for a kitchen knife. <\/p>\n
Alarmed, the older woman ran to her neighbour\u2019s unit and called the police. <\/p>\n
The woman left the apartment with her friend. <\/p>\n
She was arrested on Oct 14, and remanded at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) for a psychiatric assessment. <\/p>\n
The IMH report showed that the woman suffers from conduct and adjustment disorders. <\/p>\n
But she was not of unsound mind at the time of the offences, Deputy Public Prosecutor Nivethaa Ravintharan said. <\/p>\n
DPP Nivethaa sought a jail term of between 10 and 12 weeks for the woman, noting that she used a weapon to threaten her mother and placed it on a vulnerable part of her body. <\/p>\n
She added that the woman\u2019s intoxication should not be considered a mitigating factor, as she had drunk similar amounts of alcohol on previous occasions and had no trouble carrying out her daily activities. <\/p>\n
In mitigation, the woman, who appeared in court via video link, said: \u201cI am remorseful, and I wasn\u2019t clear-minded that day.\u201d <\/p>\n
She added: \u201cI don\u2019t want to hurt my family again… I hope I can reconcile with my family and continue to attend counselling.\u201d <\/p>\n
For criminal intimidation, an offender can be jailed for up to two years, fined, or both. <\/p>\n
For voluntarily causing hurt, an offender can be jailed for up to three years, fined up to $5,000, or both. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n