The eldest daughter of tycoon Stanley Ho was released on a good behaviour bond without a criminal record yesterday for assaulting a three-year-old boy at a buffet in a five-star hotel in Wan Chai in July.
Jane Ho Chiu-ying, 60, appeared in Eastern Court, where she was charged with common assault.
The tycoon's eldest daughter from his late first wife, Clementina Angela Leitao Ho, admitted stepping on the boy's left foot because she was 'very upset' after he bumped into her, causing her to fall and drop her food.
Principal magistrate Garry Tallentire granted her the HK$2,500 bond for two years after considering exceptional circumstances. Government psychiatric reports said Ms Ho suffered from schizophrenia which contributed significantly to the assault.
The magistrate said that any assault on a child was a serious offence and expressed his sympathy to the victim's father.
Chief Court Prosecutor Ernest Cheung Yan-ming said after the psychiatric assessment that 'it is not in the interests of justice to continue with the prosecution of a person who, in particular, is suffering from a mental disorder'. The Department of Justice believed the bond was appropriate despite reservations from the boy's father.
Ms Ho apologised yesterday to the boy and his family through her lawyer, Jonathan Midgley, who asked that the case be dismissed after she was charged on July 26.