Far north woman broke fellow reveller's nose on night out in Highland capital

A Thurso woman broke a a fellow reveller's nose and left her with impaired vision after being laughed at while on a night out, a court has heard.

Annalie Hercher (28) was in Inverness city centre in the early hours of October 3 last year when the attack was carried out.

Inverness Sheriff Court heard that Hercher had been on Baron Taylor Street around 3.15am near Max's takeaway when she carried out the first of two assaults that morning.

Fiscal depute Victoria Silver said Hercher, who admitted the offences, had gotten into a verbal altercation with a man and had spat in his face.

She then left the area but returned a short while later and accosted a woman following another interaction in which she was laughed at.

Hercher, of Lord Thurso Court, then hit the woman on the head knocking her to the ground.

She then straddled her victim and punched and kicked her on the head and body while she was on the ground.

The fiscal depute said the woman was left with a concussion, her nose was broken in three places and she suffered bruising to her face.

The court was told that her vision continues to be impaired.

Defence agent Mark Chapman described the attacks as an "unsavoury incident" and said excess alcohol had played a part.

Sheriff Eilidh MacDonald imposed a community payback order with 150 hours of unpaid work as a direct alternative to custody.