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10 Oct 2025

Derry woman jailed for beer bottle attack on former partner

Shannon McGurk (23) of Clonmakane Court in Derry admitted assaulting the man occasioning actual bodily harm, assaulting the woman and criminal damage on July 6 last year

£250,000 fraud case involving Donegal woman adjourned at Derry Magistrate's Court

Derry Magistrates' Court

A woman who called to her former partner's home at 2am demanding to see her child hit the man over the head with a beer bottle and bit a woman there.
Shannon McGurk (23) of Clonmakane Court in Derry admitted assaulting the man occasioning actual bodily harm, assaulting the woman and criminal damage on July 6 last year.
The court heard the defendant arrived at the injured party's home where he was with his new partner.
McGurk demanded to see their child and then lifted a beer bottle and broke it over the man's head leaving a wound that required to be glued together.
She also bit the woman on the arm and damaged furniture in the home.
At interview McGurk said she only had 'a vague recollection' of an altercation. 
Defence counsel Sinead Rogan said the defendant had a 'traumatic background' but this offence occurred more than a year ago with no repetition.
The barrister said it was a 'very serious incident' but added that the defendant may benefit from external intervention. 
District Judge Ted Magill said that the defendant was 'clearly very drunk' and had acted 'wholly inappropriately' by going to her former partner's home at 2am. 
He said these were very serious offences that could easily have gone to the Crown Court. 
The judge said the court could not tolerate someone going to another's house and hitting them with a beer bottle. 
McGurk was jailed for four months. 

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