Sydney socialite mistress of late billionaire Richard Pratt faces court accused of biting a police officer after long lunch - but fails to convince judge she has a mental illness
- Sydney socialite Shari-Lee Hitchcock requested a Section 32 last month
- The clause is for those suffering with mental illness at the time of the offence
- Magistrate Michael Barko denied her application on Monday
- She is accused of lashing out at a woman and biting a police officer last year
- Ms Hitchcock claims she was having a hypoglycemic episode at the time
- Mr Barko said she only had 'two to three slices' of thin crust pizza for lunch
Sydney socialite Shari-Lea Hitchcock has had her application to be heard in court under a mental health disorder clause denied.
The 47-year-old is facing charges of common assault, assaulting police and resisting arrest following an incident in March 2016.
It is alleged she lashed out at a woman who tried to help her cross Oxford Street in Woollahra, before biting a female police constable.
Ms Hitchcock claimed she was suffering from a hypoglycaemic episode at the time.
Sydney socialite Shari-Lee Hitchcock has had her request to be heard in court under a Section 32 denied
The former long-time mistress of late billionaire Richard Pratt had been dining with friends earlier that day and consumed only 'two to three slices' of thin crust pizza and 'two glasses of alcohol', magistrate Michael Barko said in Waverley court on Monday.
She left the luncheon, 'stumbling in high-heel boots' and was spotted by a bystander, Jan Haswell, hanging on to a rail on Oxford Street.
Police alleged Ms Haswell tried to guide Hitchcock off the road and stopped her from leaving in a taxi before police arrived at the scene.
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The judge said Hitchcock was 'highly intoxicated, aggressive and abusive' when she kicked a police officer and bit a female constable on the left leg around the knee.
Her lawyer, Greg James, previously submitted a doctor's report stating she was suffering from a hypoglycaemic episode and said her 'increasingly irrational' reaction to police was due to a belief she was being unlawfully detained.
Magistrate Michael Barko denied the application for her case to be heard under Section 32 on Monday.
The clause is for those suffering a mental illness at the time of the alleged offence
Ms Hitchcock is facing charges of common assault, assaulting police and resisting arrest
The clause is usually for offenders suffering a mental health disorder.
The Magistrate did not agree this description fit Ms Hitchcock, and told the court: 'It does not appear to me that the accused was suffering from a mental health condition'.
'The behaviour of the defendant is all too commonly considered in this court,' he added.
Ms Hitchcock has pleaded not guilty to charges of common assault, assaulting police and resisting arrest.
The matter was adjourned to a hearing on September 8.
She claims she was suffering a hypoglycemic episode at the time she allegedly assaulted a woman and bit a police officer
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