A 21-year-old woman estate agent who attacked a stranger with broken glass has been spared jail – despite the judge describing her criminal history as “breathtaking”.

The case – the agent’s 18th criminal conviction –  and the fact that she was given only a suspended sentence will now be brought to the attention of the Attorney General.

Yasmin Thomas, a negotiator with Palmer Snell in Westbourne, Bournemouth, had 17 previous convictions for assault and battery.

Judge John Harrow said she had one of the worst records for violence he had ever seen in someone of her age.

She attacked Ronnie Lee, leaving him with a deep gash close to his eye, following a row at the Bar So nightclub in Bournemouth. The cut needed stitches and he had two other lacerations on his face.

Bournemouth Crown Court heard that her previous convictions were all before she was 18.

In mitigation, Audrey Archer said Thomas had struggled to manage her temper from childhood and had sought help from mental health services before her latest offence.

She pleaded guilty to causing actual bodily harm and was given a 12-month sentence suspended for two years and 80 hours of community work. She was also told to complete an anger management course, pay a £100 victim surcharge and £1,000 in compensation to Mr Lee.

Judge Harrow told her: “It is not without a lot of hesitation and some reservations, I must confess, that I’m going to suspend that 12-month sentence for two years.

“Any offence at all will be sent back to this court and you will go straight down those steps to prison for at least 12 months.”

Local MP Tobias Ellwood, who represents Bournemouth East, said: “I am particularly concerned that he suspended [Thomas’s] sentence with ‘a lot of hesitation and some reservations’.

“He was clearly troubled by her record.

“This is now the third case of this nature that I have seen in Bournemouth in recent months, so I will now be seeking a meeting with the Attorney General to discuss these particular cases and to ask whether changes to the law are necessary to ensure that cases of this kind do not occur again.”

Palmer Snell is part of Countrywide.  This morning, a spokesperson for Palmer Snell said: “The company is aware of the conviction at Bournemouth Crown Court. We are unable to comment any further at this time.”