A woman who appeared on BBC documentary ‘Peelers’ was unable to complete more than ten hours of her community service order because of her “notoriety”, a solicitor claimed on Tuesday.
Defence solicitor Pearse MacDermott told Belfast Magistrates Court that after Jacqueline Farrell was on TV, other people who were doing their community service alongside the 44-year-old were subjecting her to taunts and abuse.
In addition, the solicitor submitted that Farrell’s “notoriety resulted in a death threat”.
“Has that been confirmed by probation?” District Judge Steven Keown asked, and Mr MacDermott said the threat has been confirmed.
North Belfast woman Farrell, who previously served a jail sentence over drug offences, featured in Stephen Nolan’s fly-on-the-wall documentary Peelers.
Police had been called to the Balmoral Hotel following reports of intoxicated guests causing a disturbance and, although initially jovial with Farrell high-fiving the broadcaster and asking after his mother, the incident ended with the 44-year-old being arrested.
Stephen Nolan in Belfast City Centre speaking with PSNI officers while making a documentry
As she is driven away, she yelled at the broadcaster “f*** you and your ma”.
In court on Tuesday, Judge Keown outlined that as the police were driving along the motorway on the way to the custody suite, Farrell lashed out and kicked the driver on the arm.
After she pleaded guilty to disorderly behaviour and assaulting police, Farrell was handed a 100-hour community service order last December and the court heard that in the last eight months, Farrell has completed ten hours of that order.
A probation officer said that PBNI “did try a workaround and put her into an alternative placement, but she was refusing to engage”.
“I’m going to leave something hanging over her head,” Judge Keown told the court.
Revoking the community service order, he replaced it with a three-month jail sentence which was suspended for 18 months.