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Woman Guilty Of GBH At Cambridge CollegeMon, May 08, 2006Source: Guardian UnlimitedA wife who stabbed her husband's mistress 17 times during an attack at a Cambridge University college was today found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm.A wife who stabbed her husband's mistress 17 times during an attack at a Cambridge University college was today found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm. Foster produced a vegetable knife from her handbag after arranging to meet mature student Julie Simpson, 45, of Beckenham, south London, at Lucy Cavendish College in October 2005. Ms Simpson, who was studying politics and history, was blinded in her right eye and left with a punctured lung after being attacked in her room, Cambridge crown court heard. Judge Gareth Hawkesworth jailed Foster for 30 months and said she would serve half the sentence before being released on licence. Foster, a retired clinical podiatrist, who is an honorary consultant at King's College Hospital in south London, attacked Ms Simpson after learning that she was having an affair with her husband, John, 58. She accepted responsibility for Ms Simpson's injuries, but said she had no memory of the attack. Foster entered no plea to the charge of causing grievous bodily harm. Jurors were offered the charge as an alternative to the charges of attempted murder and causing grievous bodily harm with intent - both of which Foster had denied. After the hearing, Detective Constable Karen Brown, who led the investigation, said: "I am satisfied with the decision of the court." She added: "Her actions have caused pain, suffering, shock and distress not just to Ms Simpson, but to family, friends and the student community. "I hope today's verdict and sentence will afford all those involved some sense of relief and enable them to move on with their lives." Ms Simpson said: "I would like to thank the paramedics and medical teams whose skill and expertise saved my life. "I would like to thank everyone else that came to my aid on that day. I now look forward to getting on with my life, and, I hope, resuming my studies in October. Mr Foster said after the hearing: "The events of October 3 have had a devastating effect not just on the two women involved, but on all of us who have been caught up in the aftermath. "I still find it almost impossible to believe that the kind, loving and gentle woman with whom I have lived for the best of 40 years could be capable of doing such a thing. "This private tragedy has been played out in public and I am grateful to the many friends and all those members of both my and my wife's family who have given me their support - particularly of course to my sons, Julien and William. "The bail conditions have prevented me from seeing or speaking to my wife for almost six months. "It is right I should talk to her privately before making any decisions about the future." Foster served six weeks in custody on remand after being charged in October. She was then released on bail pending trial. |