A teacher who lied to police and assaulted her husband has been handed a suspended sentence.

Carole Jones pleaded guilty to offences of wasting police time and common assault.

Magistrates sentenced the 38-year-old, who lives at Silverburn Drive, Ballasalla, to four months’ custody, suspended for two years, and also made her the subject of a two-year suspended sentence supervision order.

She was also ordered to pay £250 compensation to her husband and £125 prosecution costs.

Magistrates chair David Nash told Jones: ’What you have done is ridiculous. Frankly for a lady in your position it is outrageous.

’Your lies resulted in somebody being arrested, detained and charged.’

Prosecuting advocate Rebecca Cubbon told the court that, on August 5 last year, Jones’s husband reported that he had been assaulted at Ballasalla train station by his wife.

He was said to have scratch marks but his wife showed police what appeared to be strangulation marks on her neck.

Ms Jones said that she had been assaulted by him.

Her husband was subsequently arrested but the case against him was later dropped after phone recordings showed him to be the victim.

He told police that the couple had argued at home on August 5 and he had left the property.

He said that his wife had then followed him to the station where she lunged at him and grabbed his ear.

He provided audio recordings and text messages which supported his claims.

The court heard that Ms Jones has a previous caution for provoking behaviour in 2012.

Defence advocate Michael Mudge said: ’Clearly there are underlying issues Ms Jones needs to address and she has taken steps towards that. She has voluntarily engaged with Motiv8 and the Drug and Alcohol Team.

’It is clear any sentence should include a supervision element. She needs all the support she can get to ensure this behaviour does not occur again.

’Ms Jones knows she wasted police time and they could have been dealing with more serious matters.

’She is someone with a professional job with respect. This conviction is likely to have dire consequences.’

Mr Mudge went on to say that the common assault was relatively minor and that both offences were ’spur of the moment’ fuelled by the consumption of alcohol.

’There was no level of pre-meditation and there is an underlying history,’ said the advocate.

’Ms Jones has already suffered punishment. She is likely to lose her employment and needs to restart her life from scratch.’

Mr Mudge added that his client had child care responsibilities.

Magistrates sentenced Jones to four months custody for each offence, to run concurrently, but both suspended for two years.

Mr Nash said that they had considered the fact that she was in a toxic relationship when deciding to suspend the sentence.