Northampton woman jailed for breach of criminal behaviour order

A 44-year-old woman who breached a court order by drinking alcohol in Northampton town centre has been jailed.

Sylvia Johnston was the subject of a two-year criminal behaviour order (CBO) handed down by magistrates on May 10 this year following an application from Northamptonshire Police due to her anti-social behaviour in the town.

Conditions of the CBO included a town-centre exclusion zone and a ban on her drinking in public.

On Friday, September 6, officers patrolling as part of Operation Workforce, the Force’s campaign to drive down crime in the town centre, found Johnston intoxicated in Abington Street with an open alcoholic drink. She then walked off into Wellington Street where she urinated in public.

The location and her behaviour resulted in her being arrested and she was later charged with breaching the CBO and outraging public decency.

Johnston, of no fixed address, was remanded to Northampton Magistrates’ Court on Saturday, September 7, where she received a prison sentence of 18 weeks after indicating a guilty plea.

Speaking afterwards, Northampton Neighbourhood Policing Sergeant Aaron Dilley said: “This incident was Sylvia Johnston’s 10th breach of her CBO this year, and we have repeatedly put her before the courts for her lack of regard for the conditions she is supposed to abide by.

“Her actions on September 6 were absolutely unacceptable and it’s this sort of thing that tarnishes an area for everyone else – people should not have to put up with anti-social behaviour like this.

“Operation Workforce is all about taking robust action against those who refuse help and continue to commit crime and cause issues in Northampton town centre, affecting those who live, work and shop there.

“We take those issues very seriously and have been successfully using a range of powers to take action against them. This sentence illustrates that those who commit what they may see as low-level anti-social behaviour may end up facing a custodial sentence as a result.”

The conditions of Johnston’s CBO will remain in effect upon her release from prison.