Rockingham: woman receives suspended jail term for meth-induced assault on police

POLICE who were assaulted as they tried to assist a woman under the influence of methamphetamine described her appearance at the time as ‘foaming at the mouth and screaming’.

Kasey Jade Rimmer pleaded guilty to four charges of assaulting a public officer when she appeared at Rockingham Magistrates Court last Friday.

She received a suspended jail term and 12-month Intensive Supervision Order (ISO), with 10 months suspended.

The prosecutor said the first lot of assaults happened when several members of the public contacted police about a woman acting strangely at Northport, Wannanup at 7.40am, July 20 2016.

She had told people that she was being held against her will.

When police arrived she said the same thing but did not believe the officers were real police.

Then she suddenly ran to the police car sat in the driver’s seat.

When police went near her she kicked one of the officers to the head and kicked the other officer to his lower rib cage.

Police discovered she had consumed a large amount of methamphetamine several hours earlier.

At an earlier incident on April 7, police were called to a carpark at King’s College, Wellard.

Rimmer had called 000 requiring police assistance as she believed people were after her.

When they did arrive, she did not believe they were real police even though they were in uniform and they showed her their marked police car.

Police tried to calm her but she dug her nails into one officer’s arms drawing blood and also bit him on his knee, breaking the skin.

She then kicked the other officer in the groin.

They said she was in a highly distressed and agitated state.

Police said it took 40 minutes to restrain Rimmer as they waited for St John Ambulance to arrive.

When the ambulance did arrive, they sedated her for her own, the police and the paramedics’ protection.

The lawyer said the facts were accepted and Rimmer had been working at The Players bar in Mandurah where she was introduced to methamphetamine and became addicted to it.

He said her drug use escalated at Christmas 2015 after a family incident.

He said she was then homeless and sleeping in her car.

He asked for an order as opposed to a prison term as she had no previous record.

Magistrate Leanne Atkins said the original choice to do methamphetamine had almost destroyed Rimmer’s life.

“I read the report with some concern the position you put yourself in through your addiction to methamphetamine,” she said.

“Police officers were so concerned for your welfare and wanted to help you.

“You caused one of them significant injury with the scratch that drew blood. That would have caused him trauma due to the threat of blood borne diseases.

“There is a significant need for personal and general deterrence an immediate term of prison is warranted.

“However it will be suspended. I am placing you on an ISO of 10 months suspended for 12 months.

“There will be supervision, programs random urine analysis and 100 hours community service work.

“You are only 25 and I hope you have had a significant wake-up call.”

Rimmer became visibly upset and crying when Magistrate Atkins sentenced her.