Parking rage woman sentenced

Julie Brown's son (left) tries to stop the car being pushed out

A woman driver rammed another car into oncoming traffic after a row over a parking space has been sentenced to 100 hours of community service.

Melanie Andrews, 20, became infuriated when Julie Brown took the only free space in the centre of a street in Andover, Hampshire.

She used her car to push the other vehicle backwards out of the space and into the face of oncoming traffic, Winchester Crown Court heard.

Andrews, of Penton Mewsey, Hants, was sentenced after being convicted last month of dangerous driving.

Judge Charles Wade said: "You quite resolutely and deliberately used your car to push Mrs Brown's car into the road and went into the car parking space which you had, in my view, quite arrogantly decided was yours.

Andrews leaves court

"There can be absolutely no justification for what you did."

The court heard how Mrs Brown had waited for the space to become free and indicated she was going to pull into it.

But she said Andrews came from the other side of the space and gestured she was not happy, telling Mrs Brown that if she would not move then she would do it for her.

CCTV footage of the incident showed Andrews moving her car in front of Mrs Brown's and shunting it out of the space.

'Selfish actions'

At one stage Mrs Brown's 12-year-old son tried physically to stop the car being moved but Andrews continued pushing it.

Ian Lowrie, defending, asked for a conditional discharge as Andrews had wanted to join the armed forces.

But the judge said that her selfish actions in trying to get the space were so serious he could not consider that.

"That driving was clearly dangerous not just insofar as it affected Mrs Brown's young son - and who can forget the image of him captured on video as he tried, quite vainly but mercifully briefly, to stop the movement of your car."

Andrews told Mrs Brown she would move her

Mr Lowrie said Andrews had been suffering a number of problems including debt and treatment for depression at the time.

He said: "It is clear that this incident was effectively the straw that broke the camel's back.

"She chose this moment to exercise some of the determination not to be pushed around or be told what to do.

"It is not a tantrum, it is a manifestation of a great deal welling up in that lady's life."

Andrews had pleaded not guilty to dangerous driving, but admitted criminal damage to Mrs Brown's car, which had a damaged number plate and bumper.

Judge Wade also ordered her to pay £75 each to Mrs Brown and her son and disqualified her from driving for 12 months and ordered her to take another driving test.