A woman who harboured ‘preposterous historical grievances’ against her local council has been jailed for 15 months after bombarding emergency services with hundreds of 999 calls.
Helen Spencer, 58, from Westfield Close, Doncaster, made dozens of nuisance calls in October, November and January despite previously being warned she would be jailed.
In June last year she had been given an 18-month suspended jail term after calling 999 more than 900 times in previous years.
A Sheffield Crown Court judge told Spencer that ‘enough is enough’.
‘This cannot go on. You must alter your ways and unless you do I’m afraid the courts must act and with a sense of purpose to put a stop to this,’ Jeremy Richardson KC said.
Helen Spencer made 32 nuisance emergency calls to Yorkshire Ambulance Service between 5 October and 16 November 2022
She was sentenced to 12 months in prison for breaching the suspended sentence order and a further three months for two counts of improper use of a public electronic communications
Ms Spencer was described as harbouring ‘preposterous historical grievances’ against authorities such as the Yorkshire Ambulance Service and South Yorkshire Police.
She made 32 nuisance emergency calls to Yorkshire Ambulance Service between 5 October and 16 November 2022, including dozens more to other services.
On one occasion, Ms Spencer rang 999 while paramedics were already at her home responding to an earlier call.
Mitigating, Ian West said it was concluded via a doctor that Spencer had mixed personality disorder comprised of emotional, dissocial and paranoid symptoms.
Mr Richardson said he was ‘not unmindful’ of these psychological issues, but added that a prison sentence was unavoidable despite being ‘prepared to be merciful’.
The judge sentenced her to 12 months for breaching the suspended sentence order and a further three months for two counts of improper use of a public electronic communications network for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety.
