A drunk woman who was angry with a neighbour for helping somebody she didn't like attacked him with a claw hammer.

Carlisle Crown Court heard how victim Timothy Winter suffered a broken nose during the 1.30am attack carried out by 43-year-old Nicola Milloy outside her victim's home in the city.

Milloy was jailed for 20 months.

Prosecutor Gerard Rogerson described how the defendant had previously been on friendly terms with Mr Winter. She had even socialised with him at his house.

But when she discovered that he had been helping a local man called Lucien, she was furious, said Mr Rogerson.

On October 1, she downed eight cans of Fosters lager and was clearly drunk.

Angered by learning that Mr Winter had helped the man she objected to, she armed herself with a claw hammer and went to his home at around 10pm intending to smash his windows.

Her first attempt failed.

Mr Winter had heard a bang on a downstairs window, but when he went outside to check, he could find nobody.

At 1.30am the following morning, as he was getting ready for bed, he heard another bang on a window.

"As he was getting his shoes on to go outside to investigate," said Mr Rogerson, "the window smashed, so he went out of his back door.

"The defendant was standing in the lane behind his house, and he asked her what she was doing.

"It was at this point that she first hit him with the claw hammer, striking a blow to his face, saying he'd chosen the wrong person to help."

As Mr Winter tried to shield himself, Milloy continued the attack, swinging the hammer at him, delivering a second blow to the back of his head. He eventually managed to escape.

He called police and a short time later, officers found the defendant nearby, blind drunk. They also found the bloodstained hammer. Mr Winter later reported that he had suffered a broken nose in the attack.

The court heard that there had been no explanation of why Milloy took exception to Mr Winter helping the man Lucien, whose nickname was Lucky.

Greg Hoare, for Milloy, said there was clearly something in his client's background that needed to be addressed but any treatment she needed was unlikely to happen in a prison setting.

Referring to the eight weeks Milloy has spent on remand, the barrister said: "She's found it an wholly unpalatable experience. "It's been very difficult for her.

"She realises that she needs to address two issues.

"One is related to her mental health; and secondly she needs to do something about her excessive drinking."

This latter issue she intended to tackle with the help of the local organisation Unity, said Mr Hoare, adding that the defendant missed her family, some of who were in court to support her.

Recorder Philip Curran described the incident as distressing, with the defendant having confronted Mr Winter, who had been a friend a neighbour.

He told Milloy: "You tried to put it down to saying you were only defending yourself, but you were 100 per cent the aggressor in all of what happened that evening.. and it is not the first time you have been in court for violence."

As recently as 2015, Milloy was prosecuted for battery, and using threatening behaviour, and before that for racially aggravated harassment, and being drunk and disorderly.

Despite the help she had been given, said the judge, she had not changed her ways.

Acknowledging that the defendant had shown some remorse, Recorder Curran imposed the 20 month jail term, saying he would be failing in his public duty if he did not jail her.