Coventry landlady battered brother with mace in pub row

A Coventry pub landlady battered her brother with a medieval mace in a row over drinking-up time.


Laura Cotterill-Attaway arrives at court yesterday with her husband Jason

Laura Cotterill-Attaway smashed the fearsome spiked club into Peter Lee’s face at the Rising Sun, in Spon Street, Coventry Crown Court heard.

Mr Lee suffered two broken teeth and needed specialist dental work to repair the damage. Cotterill-Attaway, whose husband Jason used the weapon in medieval battle re-enactments, admitted assault causing actual bodily harm.

Passing a suspended sentence yesterday, Judge Peter Stretton told Cotterill-Attaway only “exceptional” circumstances stopped her going to jail.

The court heard Cotterill-Attaway, 34, who was six months pregnant at the time of the attack, intervened in a fight between her husband and her brother – a partner in the pub – over Mr Lee’s decision to continue drinking after 2am on July 4 last year.

Kathryn Roughton, prosecuting, said: “Mr Cotterill-Attaway believed drinks were being sold after closing time and wanted everyone to leave. There was a disagreement between Mr Lee and Mr Cotterill-Attaway and they began grappling with each other, and punches were thrown.

“Mrs Cotterill-Attaway had seen what was happening on CCTV, came downstairs and, without warning, struck Mr Lee with a medieval mace.”

Miss Roughton said Cotterill-Attaway pleaded guilty on the basis she thought Mr Lee was the aggressor, and armed herself with the mace to “make herself look more threatening.”