Brittney Edwards faces court after going to victim's Orange home and threatening her

Brittney Joan Edwards, 28, of Anson Street, was charged with common assault and entering a building with intent to commit an indictable offence. The offence was prosecuted in the local court by the Director of Public Prosecutions.

According to court documents, Edwards, was one of three women who went to a woman's house in Orange after one of the co-accused, Gabrielle Von Einen got into an argument with the victim over messenger about 4pm on November 6, 2021.

The trio arrived outside the house about 15 minutes after the argument began and the victim heard yelling outside.

The victim went outside and Von-Einen punched her in the head and face five times.

The victim put her arms up to protect her head but did not try and hit Von Einen back as the scuffle moved into the hallway of the house.

Edwards and the other co-accused, who is not named because she did not receive a conviction, also entered the house but two men who were also there stopped them from approaching Von Einen and the victim and told them to "get the f*** out of the house," and "get out there is kids here".

Edwards and the other co-accused then left the house.

The men then removed Von Einen from the house and the three women stood outside for several minutes and yelled at the victim.

Edwards yelled words to the effect that she would "smash every window in this house" before leaving to another address.

Police were called as soon as they left and they were getting a witness statement at 4.35pm when Edwards returned to retrieve Von Einen's phone, which had been dropped when she assaulted the victim in the hall.

However, when she asked for the phone, police told her that it had been seized and they asked the victim if she was one of the women who came to the house.

When the victim said she was, Edwards swore at her and said, "I'll catch you motherf***er, jump on your head you mutt, I'll kill you, you dirty dog".

Police arrested her and during an interview Edwards said she was angry with the victim and admitted to returning to the house and threatening the victim.

Although Von Einen did the punching, Edward's solicitor Andrew Rolfe conceded that it was a joint criminal enterprise.

The DPP elected not to take the case to the district court and the prosecutor said the custodial threshold was not crossed in this matter.

"[It's] mid-range of objective seriousness given it was five punches to the face and head, it's more serious than [the third co-accused] given that Edwards went inside the house," the prosecutor said.

"In circumstances where there is significant violence, we've charged that as a common assault."

Edwards was considered to be a medium risk of reoffending.

"Whilst the Crown doesn't submit that her criminal history is aggravating by any means, but it does submit that it doesn't entitle her to leniency," the prosecutor said.

Magistrate David Day said there was a parity issue with the three offenders, so he needed to make sure the sentences lined in relation to the two concurrent 12-month Community Correction Orders Magistrate Christopher McRobert previously handed Von Einen for the same charges.

Mr Day sentenced Edwards to a 12-month Community Correction Order requiring rehabilitation for the common assault and he gave her a two-year Community Correction Order with 50 hours of community service for entering the victim's house.

"It's in the home of the victim," Mr Day said.

The third co-accused was given a Conditional Release Order, without a conviction.

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