A Canberra woman who "violently" coughed on police officers while falsely claiming to have COVID-19 used to work for the Australian Federal Police before her life "spiralled into disorder and sadness".
Jayce Leigh Cooper, 30, walked free on Friday after being sentenced to a backdated jail term by Magistrate James Stewart, who told her: "I truly hope that you thrive".
Cooper, who was on both bail and a suspended jail sentence at the time of her offending, threatened two police officers and their families when she was arrested in Hawker for a breach of bail on April 12.
Documents tendered to the ACT Magistrates Court say the threats included Cooper telling the officers: "You're f---ed, c----. I'll find out where you dogs live". She also said: "I'll kill your f---ing family, c---".
Cooper was taken following this incident to the ACT Watch House, where she started kicking the inside of a police vehicle.
When two different officers opened the back of the vehicle to get Cooper out, she "began violently coughing" on those officers and falsely claiming to have tested positive for coronavirus.
Cooper later pleaded guilty to two charges each of common assault and resisting police.
She also pleaded guilty to charges of possessing methamphetamine and failing to appear in court, which stemmed from incidents in 2019.
The court heard on Friday that in relation to the six charges, Cooper had been remanded in custody three times for a total of 188 days.
Cooper told Mr Stewart that during her most recent stint behind bars, which comprised about half of the total time on remand, she had thought hard about the future.
She said she was motivated by wanting to do better for her three children.
Cooper's lawyer, Darryl Perkins, said Cooper was "embarrassed" by her actions towards the police.
He said her behaviour on the day in question had been influenced by illicit drug use, and that she had been "quite angry and quite excited, in a bad way".
"Her behaviour there, apart from being quite futile, was quite inappropriate," Mr Perkins said.
Prosecutor Erin Priestly said each of the six charges, with the exception of the drug possession, warranted time behind bars.
Mr Stewart agreed, but said Cooper had already served enough time after being on remand for more than six months in total.
The magistrate said it was clear that Cooper had the ability to succeed in the community given she had previously had a successful career in the public service, including as an Australian Federal Police employee.
Mr Stewart said Cooper's life had "spiralled into disorder and sadness", largely because of her illicit drug use.
"Her criminality reflects a level of disrespect for the police, which is sad because she has previously worked successfully for the same force," he said.
Mr Stewart said that Cooper, having reached the age of 30, was now at "a traditional turning point" in life.
He said he wanted to impose a sentence that did not leave anything "hanging over her head" in order to give Cooper a chance to rebuild her life.
"She deserves the opportunity to stand on her own two feet in the community," Mr Stewart said.
Mr Stewart imposed a total jail sentence of six months, covering each of the charges and the time remaining on Cooper's suspended sentence.
Having already served that time on remand, Cooper was released immediately.
Mr Stewart sent Cooper on her way by telling her: "I truly hope that you thrive."
