A Chilliwack woman who was involved in a violent purse snatching that left the victim fighting for her life originally intended to act as a "Good Samaritan," the woman's lawyer told a Chilliwack judge Tuesday afternoon.

Vanessa Skerratt has pleaded guilty to charges of robbery in connection with a violent 2010 robbery and beating.

The court heard Tuesday that Skerratt and another woman attacked the victim outside the downtown Chilliwack BMO in March of 2010.

The victim had just emerged from the bank when she was assaulted. Her attackers punched the victim in the face and the throat before running off with her purse. Crown counsel Carolyn Kramer told Judge Roy Dickey that when the victim pursued her assailants, she was viciously attacked from behind by Skerratt.

Kramer said Skerratt then bashed the victim's head against a wall four times and that Skerratt and the other woman stomped the victim's head into the ground and kicked and punched her.

The woman sustained serious injuries, including small skull fractures and brain swelling.

She regained consciousness the day after the attack. In a victim impact statement, she wrote: "I found out that I was lucky to be alive and that the doctors weren't sure if I was going to make it through the night."

The victim said she suffered a severe concussion that made it difficult to drive, to go grocery shopping and to continue her university studies.

"My life has been totally uprooted and changed, all for a $10 bill and some change I had in my purse," she wrote. "The attack constantly runs through my head. It seems I can't even go a few minutes without thinking about it."

But Skerratt's lawyer, Gurpreet Gill, said her client was tricked into participating in the attack by her coaccused, Ashleigh Tschritter. Gill said Skerratt had a low mental capacity and was easily manipulated. She said Skerratt had been told that the purse actually belonged to Tschritter and that only later did she learn "that she's been taken for a ride."

"She got involved through acting as a good samaritan, but it has really gone the other way," Gill told the court.

Skerratt has pleaded guilty to the robbery charges and admitted to kicking and punching the victim. While Gill said Skerratt can't remember much about what happened the night of the attack because she was drunk, she said her client denies smashing the victim's head into a wall or stomping on the victim's head.

Gill also said her client has attempted to turn around her life since the attack and "has a great deal of empathy for the victim."

Crown counsel is seeking a oneyear sentence for Skerratt, while Gill told the court that her client should not go to jail and should serve a sentence in the community.

The sentencing hearing will continue later this month, with Kramer planning to call witnesses to testify about details of the attack.

Court proceedings against Tschritter continue, with a preliminary inquiry scheduled for later this month.

tolsen@chilliwacktimes.com