TWO women are being prosecuted for allegedly causing a public nuisance by threatening to commit suicide.

Both cases have come before magistrates in Poole in recent weeks. One of the women, 18-year-old Jessica Hewis-Mclean, admitted the charge and was sentenced to a community order, as part of which she must carry out a rehabilitation activity requirement for 30 days. She was also fined £50 and told to pay an £85 surcharge.

Prosecutors said Hewis-Mclean, of West Hill Road in Bournemouth, committed the offence on April 6 when she sat on the wrong side of the flyover at Cooper Dean, ‘dangling her legs and threatening to jump’. The flyover was closed for two hours.

Sapphire Povey, in Bournemouth, has also been charged with causing a public nuisance. Prosecutors allege the 21-year-old threatened to commit suicide at the Richmond Hill car park in Bournemouth on March 21. She has not yet entered a plea to the charge.

Superintendent Jared Parkin, who has responsibility for policing in Poole, Purbeck and Bournemouth, said such charges are only pursued in “very strict circumstances”.

“In these types of case, we follow all processes and all multi-agency referrals are gone through first before we made a joint decision with the CPS to pursue a prosecution,” he said.

“The prosecution of the individual dealt with by the court was a considered decision, and one we took having spoken with a number of agencies.

“We needed to make sure it was in the best interests of everyone involved. With no significant issues raised by our partner agencies, it was deemed to be appropriate to take this course of action.

“Speaking in general terms, if we believed a public nuisance offence was instigated by mental health issues, we would not prosecute.”

On May 7, a 45-year-old Dorchester woman was arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance after a woman stood on the Maiden Castle Road bridge over the Dorchester Bypass.