An angry mother allegedly tried to throw paramedics out of her home because she thought she had been falsely accused of injuring her baby, a court heard.

The Sidbury woman called for an ambulance after her son cut his head in an accident with a pair of kitchen scissors.

A trial at Exeter Crown Court was told the parent became upset once the crew arrived.

She refused to let two paramedics treat the child or take him to hospital and ended up lashing out at them and two police who came to arrest her.

The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, denies child neglect and four counts of assault by beating.

Gareth Evans, prosecuting, said there is no suggestion of deliberate harm or cruelty and the charge is brought on the basis the mother tried to prevent prompt treatment of the child.

He said the injury occurred when her partner dropped a pair of scissors which landed on the baby and caused a cut on its head.

Mr Evans added that the mother had drunk four or five cans of Strongbow cider and became upset when emergency nurse Raymond Bowden arrived and her partner made a comment which suggested she had thrown the scissors.

He said: “This is a case where the jury will not have to decide if she caused deliberate injury. It is about her initially doing everything one would expect but then becoming upset.

“We are not saying she threw the scissors but her partner’s words led to the situation Mr Bowden found himself in. Things became more and more heated as far as this defendant is concerned.

“This mother was in drink and became offended because she was asked the usual questions about the mechanism of how the injury came about.

“The ambulance service personnel became involved in trying to restrain a female who was totally out of control. It was a situation born out of a misunderstanding and not helped by her being in drink.”

Mr Evans said the mother told the ambulance crew the child did not need to go to hospital and then said she would take the baby herself by bus.

She became more upset and tried to throw the two crewmen out of her home and lashed out at them as well as two police who were called to arrest her.

The mother denies doing anything which could have caused any harm to her child and says she was defending herself and trying to protect her baby during the incident.

The trial continues.