An alcoholic who assaulted two female police officers as they tried to arrest her following a spate of shoplifting incidents has been warned to accept she has a problem with booze or she'll end up at HMP Eastwood Park - the female prison in Gloucestershire.

Danielle Prosser was caught on CCTV stealing alcohol from the Spar shop in Penryn on two occasions last summer but when two female police officers turned up at her address in the town, she became aggressive towards them and violently pulled one of the officers by the hair and neck and pushed her towards a window.

During that struggle on August 2 last year, the second police officer tried to detain Prosser but was pushed backwards into the neighbouring property and hit the window which smashed. A sentencing hearing at Truro Crown Court today (Tuesday, January 21) heard how Prosser was eventually restrained but as she continued to resist arrest had to be sprayed with tear gas.

The court was told that the officers had gone to her address in The Terrace, Penryn, at 1.14am that day to arrest Prosser in connection with two incidents of shoplifting on June 25 and July 7 where she stole bottles of wine and a bag of sweets worth £24.12 and three bottles of wine to the value of £19.47 respectively.

In a victim business impact statement read out in court, the owner of the Spar said his shop was constantly being targeted by shoplifters which has an impact on his business not only in terms of financial losses, but also in terms of the time waste and lost reviewing CCTV and reporting incidents to the police.

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Prosser, 32, who has 12 convictions for 21 offences including shoplifting, assaulting a police officer, battery and causing actual bodily harm, pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity to two counts of shoplifting, one count of assaulting an emergency worker, another of criminal damage and a fifth one of resisting arrest.

Her defence barrister told the court, Prosser had a bad childhood and had issues with alcohol since then but had now realised she has a problem and wants to deal with it.

Her barrister said: "She has some stability and has been in the same flat for two years after a period of homelessness in Camborne.

"She is now attending alcoholics anonymous and knows that her only chance is complete abstinence. She feels remorse for her behaviour. She has been having seizures which has not been helped by her substance abuse. She is trying to keep her alcoholism under control. She wants to build confidence to talk about her issues in group. She asks to be given a chance so she can make plans for the future."

His Honour Judge Simon Carr told Prosser she is an alcoholic and that means she cannot drink alcohol ever again, even the odd drink or there, or she will spend most of her life in prison or end up dead.

Sentencing Prosser to four months in prison suspended for two years as well as an alcohol requirement order for nine months and 20 days of rehabilitation activity requirement, he told her: "You have attempted to address your addiction. I know how difficult it can be to beat an addiction so the time you have been sober is to your credit.

"Given the attempts you have made to advance your abstinence it is better managed in the community. But commit any offence of any sort over the next two years or breach your alcohol requirement order and you will go straight to prison. This is your last opportunity.

"You are an alcoholic and you need to either accept it and choose to have a life or it will be a revolving door to HMP Eastwood Park."

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