A MOTHER of three who narrowly escaped being sent to jail last Friday walked free again yesterday.

Donna Ayres, 22, was given a community penalty at Burnley Crown Court last week after taking part in a terror attack on a housebound 79 year-old pensioner with masked accomplices.

Yesterday, a second judge echoed the sentiments of the Crown Court bench in telling her she should be ashamed of herself.

He also allowed her to keep her liberty and gave her the same sentence after she racially abused and spat at an Asda worker.

District Judge Gwynne Jones told Burnley Magistrates' Court the Crown Court judge's decision had been "quite surprising."

He said his "hands were realistically tied" if Ayres had not earlier been sent to custody for what seemed to be a more serious offence.

The district judge said the assault was extremely serious and was not the kind of behaviour any court would tolerate.

He told Ayres: "I did think long and hard about about sending you to prison. Many people would say you deserved to be sent to prison for that offence."

The district judge said probation reports suggested the defendant was making an effort to turn the corner and the Crown Court judge must have thought so to.

He added: "He must have been impressed with something about you."

Ayres, formerly of Athol Street North, Burnley, and now of Blackburn Road , Haslingden, admitted deception, failing to surrender and racially aggravated assault, in October 2002. She was given a two year community rehabilitation order and told to pay £50 compensation.

The court was told the defendant went to Asda, Burnley, and handed over a Visa card for a £118 trolley load. It came up as detained when swiped. Ayres was pregnant and the operative did not want to embarrass her in front of customers so another employee was called. The defendant refused to give him any details, was racially abusive, started shouting and spat three times in his face.

Police arrived and Ayres told them she had been given the card by a friend she did not wish to name. She claimed in return she would get some of the goods.

Geoff Ireland, defending, said Ayres probably considered herself lucky to have got a community penalty on Friday.

Mr Ireland handed the judge a letter from the defendant in which she described her past life and hopes for the future.