A bitter feud between families erupted in violence as a woman repeatedly beat her neighbour over the head with a claw hammer in an attack from behind, leaving him with a fractured skull and covered in blood. 

Lisa Williams, 49, of St Catherines Road in Chingford, lost control and attacked David Coleman as the 54-year-old brawled with her brother, Jonathon, in the street. 

Today (April 1) Judge Richard Sutton at Snaresbrook Crown Court sentenced Williams to 30 months behind bars and ordered an indefinite restraining order banning her from contacting her victim. 

Police were called on June 19 2013 after Williams dialled 999 when she saw the pair fighting and heard her mother screaming 'leave him alone, leave him alone' in the background.

This Is Local London:

Lisa Williams has been jailed for 30 months after attacking a neighbour with a claw hammer from behind

Violence falred after Mr Coleman confronted Mr Williams for allegedly smearing mud all over his front bay windows that morning. 

After trying to break up the fight, Williams returned to her home and emerged holding a claw hammer, which she then used to hit Mr Coleman three times over the back of the head.

She was only stopped when a third neighbour, Bernard Mason, pulled the hammer out of her hands.

His wife Pamela then restrained her by sitting on her until the police arrived.

Mr Coleman's wife of 34 years, Mary Coleman, said she returned home from work to find her husband seated on the front porch covered in blood. 

Williams admitted striking her neighbour, but claimed she did so out of panic and on the belief her brother was about to be killed.  

The two families had been locked in a bitter feud ever since the Colemans moved in next door to the Williams family in 2007.

Prosecutor James Benson, described the two families as "neighbours at war". 

The Colemans claimed their neighbours had an irrational hatred of them and described them as "pure evil".

But Judge Sutton remarked: "It takes two to Tango".

Since the attack, Mr Coleman said he suffers headaches and often has to take days off of work.

Due to him being attacked from behind, he said he suffers from anxiety when people are behind him, which causes him problems in his job as a taxi driver.  

This Is Local London:

Lisa Williams was sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court  

Williams, who was convicted of two counts of unlawful wounding, has been living apart from her family for almost two years since the incident.

Her family are in the process of selling their Chingford home. 

Jailing Williams, Judge Sutton, said: "You find yourself in a very, very sad situation and as you no doubt appreciate, this has come about because of the situation that has evolved between you and your neighbours.

"This in my view was an incident waiting to happen and it was going to be serious and both sides were quite prepared for confrontation as and when it arose.

"That's the problem, if it becomes violent, you never quite know where it is going to end. 

"I understand that you thought the only way to respond to what was taking place was to arm yourself and it's that action that the law finds unallowable and therefore criminal.

"I accept that there was a substantial amount of provocation."