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'Death driver' abuses court, judge

'Death driver' abuses court, judge

A woman due to be sentenced for the manslaughter of a caravan park owner she deliberately ran over in her car has been sent to a psychiatric hospital after calling a Supreme Court judge a "bitch" and a "bully".

Katie Walkerley, 46, was convicted earlier this year over the death of Rita Addenbrooke, who died from catastrophic head injuries at the Kingsway Tourist park in February last year.

Walkerley had been accused of deliberately driving her Toyota at Ms Addenbrooke, who suffered from multiple sclerosis and needed to use a walking stick.

The court was told Walkerley drove her car into a caravan park owner while in a rage over an argument about table mats.

After storming off and getting into her car, Ms Walkerley was driving through the park playing loud music, when Ms Addenbrooke stepped in front of the car and placed her hands on the bonnet in an effort to stop her.

Instead, she kept driving forward, forcing Mrs Addenbrooke onto the bonnet and then off it.

The impact of Mrs Addenbrooke's head on the ground caused major head and brain injures and she died two days later.

At a sentencing hearing this morning, Walkerley continually interrupted Justice Lindy Jenkins from the witness box, labelling the justice process a joke, and claiming she had been forced into medical care against her will.

After calling Justice Jenkins a "bitch", a mental health nurse was requested to assess Walkerley in the cells.

But she refused to cooperate, prompting Justice Jenkins to make a mental health order, requiring Walkerley to be assessed at Graylands psychiatric hospital for seven days.

She will return to court next week.