A WOMAN with epilepsy was punched, kicked, and sat on by her neighbour as part of a ‘shocking’ assault.

The victim, who only wanted to be identified as Lauren, was assaulted by her neighbour Claire Sally Mizen, who lives in Wyke Regis, Weymouth, on June 13 of last year.

The incident began when Mizen, 32, walked past Lauren and appeared to make derogatory comments towards her about her disability.

She then dragged the mum-of-one to the floor by her hair, punched her, and kicked her with shocked neighbours shouting at her to stop. Lauren was also sat on.

Following a court case, Lauren, 30, told the Echo she was ‘disgusted’ by the attack but thanked magistrates for their handling of the case.

She said: “I’ll be honest I was disgusted, I was angry, she was pretending to have a seizure. It was hurtful, I was shocked.”

She added: “I was diagnosed when I was two years old and when I was 27 weeks pregnant that’s when I started having seizures.

"I struggled to leave the house a lot and stress and anxiety is a huge trigger for me so this was absolutely massive for me. I was having multiple seizures everyday and it’s something that is still impacting my life."

Mizen appeared before Weymouth Magistrates’ Court last month where she pleaded guilty to one charge of assault causing actual bodily harm. 

The assault was found to be aggravated on the basis of Mizen’s ‘hostility based on a disability (or presumed disability)’ of the victim.

She was issued with a 12 month community order, ordered to participate in 20 rehabilitation activity requirement days, and issued a two year restraining order. She must also pay £150 in compensation and £42.50 in costs.

A teenager, who can’t be named for legal reasons, was also convicted in connection with the assault after they admitted to stamping on Lauren's head as she lay on the floor.

Lauren said she had been told the impact of the restraining order meant she might have to move away from Weymouth - something that, she says, would bring additional stress to both her and her wider family.

She said she was grateful that the magistrates’ that heard the case ‘did what they could’ but that she was frustrated with the nine months it took for the case to come to court.