A mum has told how she feared for her life after having her neck sliced open in a vicious bottle attack in an Arbroath nightclub.
Jeanette Irvine was left permanently scarred after she was confronted by Marie Huggan at De Vito’s.
Huggan, 44, was jailed for nine months last week after a Dundee sheriff ruled there were no alternatives to a custodial sentence.
Mother-of-six Jeanette said she was terrified of the prospect of never seeing her children again as she was being attacked.
More than 18 months on from her ordeal, she said she is still receiving counselling and regularly suffers panic attacks.
‘I thought I wasn’t going to see kids again’
Speaking after Huggan’s sentencing hearing, Jeanette, 51, said: “I’m glad she was sent to prison.
“It should have been more I think but at least it wasn’t unpaid work or anything like that.
“I honestly thought I wasn’t going to see my kids again that night.”
Dundee Sheriff Court previously heard how Jeanette and a friend had been at the Millgate club on July 10 2022 when they were approached by Huggan.
An argument ensued at about 1.45am and Huggan shouted: “Do you know who I am?”
She smashed a glass bottle over Jeanette’s head and punched her friend.
Jeanette suffered a 10-to-12-inch slash to the left side of her neck, leaving a scar.
She also sustained painful bruising on her eyes.
Ongoing ‘mental trauma’
Reflecting on the night, Jeanette said: “We had sat down at a table and she (Huggan) had started being really aggressive.
“I knew of her but I didn’t know her personally.
“She had shouted ‘do you know who I am?’ at my friend and the next thing I know I’m just seeing stars.
“I just remember being on the floor sitting in the back of De Vito’s with the staff.”
The court heard Huggan, of Arbroath, told social workers that she had “disgraced herself” and “deserved everything she gets”.
Jeanette said she is still dealing with the impact of Huggan’s actions, saying: “It was absolutely horrific.
“The first couple of months I was just in complete shock.
“My kids were terrified to leave my side.
“It was just horrific for my family, I was having panic attacks and I’m still seeing a counsellor now for PTSD.
“It’s more the mental trauma that affects me. Nothing like this has ever happened in my life.”
She added: “Ever since I’ve just kept thinking about death and what would have happened if I never went to that nightclub that night and if my kids would ever see me again.
“At least justice has been done.”
Attacker ‘devastated’
Jailing “remorseful” Huggan, Sheriff Paul Brown said: “The harm caused by you to the victim is significant, both physical and psychological.”
Her lawyer added: “She was devastated when she became aware of the nature of the injuries.”
Sheriff Brown reduced the prison term from 13 months to nine because Huggan pled guilty.
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