The ‘utterly deplorable behaviour’ included threatening to slit a man’s throat
Laura Hazell pictured outside Hull Crown Court(Image: Hull Live)
An aggressive woman made the lives of her neighbours a complete misery after making menacing threats and hurling abuse at them during a nasty campaign of harassment. The “catalogue” of vindictive antics included wielding a knife and threatening to stab a man in the face.
She also threatened to slit his throat and rip his head off, Hull Crown Court heard. Laura Hazell, 39, of Greygarth Close, Bransholme, Hull, admitted affray on December 22 last year and three offences of harassment between December 23 and May 28.
Tom Doyle, prosecuting, said that a couple and their son had ongoing issues over noise and banging sounds from Hazell’s home. They obtained a civil injunction in April last year.
At 9.48pm on December 22, the man went and knocked on the door, intending to ask Hazell to keep the noise down. She was holding a knife and told him: “I will f***ing stab you in the face.”
He stepped back and tried to create a barrier of distance between them but Hazell shouted: “Who do you think you are banging on the walls, you fat nonce?” He left but she warned him: “I’m going to slit your throat.”
On January 4, she shouted: “You nosy c***. You came to see if I had a knife.” On February 2, she said: “You fat nonce. You are going to get it.”
Hazell shouted abuse on other occasions and made hand gestures. She made sexual noises about the couple’s son and she sang a sexual song. On May 15, she warned: “Your car’s going to go up.” On May 23, she made a threat: “I’ll rip his f***ing head off.”
The woman later said of Hazell’s behaviour that it made her feel so scared that she wanted to cry. She was terrified and she continued to fear for her safety.
The harassment was almost daily and her health had begun to suffer, leaving her stressed. The man said that there was non-stop abuse to the family and threats were made.
Their son claimed that he had been made to feel genuinely scared for his life. Another son said that the unpleasant conduct left him worried about what would happen.
Hazell had previous convictions. At a hearing in 2022, she was given a 16-month suspended prison sentence, a 120-day alcohol abstinence monitoring order, a six-month 9pm to 6am curfew and 30 days’ rehabilitation after admitting assaulting a woman, causing actual bodily harm, on October 10, 2021.
James O’Connor, mitigating, said that mother-of-two Hazell was still living next door to the family. “She is making every effort to find alternative accommodation,” said Mr O’Connor.
“She knows that is utterly deplorable behaviour. There is a realistic prospect of rehabilitation. She is a low risk of reoffending, although a medium risk to the public.
“She is making every effort in recent history to try to keep herself on the straight and narrow.” Hazell had kept out of trouble for seven years between 2013 and 2020.
Judge Richard Woolfall said that Hazell had narrowly avoided an immediate custodial sentence in 2022 and she twice breached the suspended sentence. There was a “catalogue” of new offences against her neighbours.
Hazell made “awful threats” including to slit the man’s throat. “You were abusing your neighbours and you kept doing it,” said Judge Woolfall.
“When you feel a rush of blood, you have got to learn to take a pause and step away. There are three victims here.”
Hazell was given a 16-month suspended prison sentence, 150 hours’ unpaid work and 20 days’ rehabilitation. “If you breach it, I will have to harden my heart and lock you up,” said Judge Woolfall.
“Let’s not see you here again. You are too old for this.”
At the original hearing in 2022 when Hazell faced the assault charge, the court was told that she “recklessly” glassed another woman, causing a nasty permanent scar, after a heated argument in a pub suddenly escalated out of control. She got into a confrontation with the other woman in the Savoy pub, Hull.
During the argument, Hazell threw a drink over the woman, who retaliated by hurling a drink over Hazell. The problems escalated and Hazell threw a pint glass at the woman, causing a wound on her forehead, which needed stitches.
The court heard that Hazell “recklessly” threw the glass and the victim suffered an “unpleasant permanent scar on her forehead”.
Judge John Thackray KC told her at the original hearing: “You should be thoroughly ashamed of yourself, throwing a glass. I accept that you didn’t intend to permanently scar your victim.”
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