Woman who hit husband with hammer awaits sentence
Pamela Teasdale was remanded in custody at Sheffield Crown Court
- Published
A woman who is due to be sentenced for attacking her husband with a lump hammer is in-line for a £1.8 million payment from her victim, a court heard.
Pamela Teasdale, 69, had been charged with attempting to murder Daniel Teasdale, 74, but admitted attempted wounding with intent.
She was due to be sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on Thursday.
However, Judge Jeremy Richardson KC was forced to delay the proceedings due to a series of legal issues.
The court heard the attack at Burne Farm in Todwick, near Rotherham, on August 21 left Mr Teasdale with significant injuries.
The offence of attempted wounding with intent carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
However, the judge could not sentence Mrs Teasdale on Thursday due to legal complexities which arose after she was arrested in May for a separate offence of allegedly stalking her husband while she was on bail.
Her barrister, Gordon Stables, explained she had pleaded guilty stalking at a previous hearing but, having now seen the full case against her, wanted to set aside this plea and contest the charge.
That matter will be resolved by Judge Richardson at a hearing on 1 August at Sheffield Crown Court.
Mrs Teasdale was remanded in custody, but Mr Stables said he would apply for her to be released on bail.
'Regrettable litigation'
The court heard the background to the offence involved a highly complex and acrimonious series of legal battles over the ownership of a cottage and the former couple's divorce.
Prosecutor Laura Marshall told Judge Richardson how Mr Teasdale, supported by the pair's children, was still fighting the terms of the divorce settlement.
Ms Marshall said the current situation was that Mr Teasdale had been ordered to pay his wife £1.8m, with £800,000 already handed over.
The remaining £1m is overdue as Mr Teasdale and his family have lodged a series of challenges to the divorce ruling, she said.
Last year it emerged the family had run up legal costs of more than £1m in a court battle over the ownership of a cottage worth £245,000.
That case went all the way to the Court of Appeal when, in his ruling, Mr Justice Moor said: "I have to say that this is one of the most regrettable pieces of litigation that I have ever come across."
Judge Richardson questioned whether the family's wealth would be "almost, if not totally extinguished" by the legal actions.
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