WHAT'S the difference between a stare and a glance?

No, it's not a joke. In fact, it could become a question for a judge to answer.

A neighbour from hell who was evicted from her home following a campaign of harassment, is being allowed back in to the village to visit friends.

But a court order bans Anissa Gregory from staring at former neighbours Stephen Causer and Sharon Smith in Middleton-St-George, near Darlington.

Gregory, 36, and her 38-year-old former partner, Javid Khaliq, were given restraining orders at Teesside Crown Court six months ago.

The move followed a year-long campaign of harassment in which there had been as many as 180 incidents where allegations and counter allegations were investigated by police.

Mr Causer and Mrs Smith spoke of their relief after their neighbours who accused them of being police informers and “grasses” were given the restraining orders in June, and then evicted in October.

The couple said the harassment they had suffered at the hands of convicted drug-dealer Khaliq and Gregory made them ill and forced them to install CCTV cameras at the front of their property.

A more recent allegation of the mother-of-three staring at the couple has been made.

Gregory - who has since moved to Stockton - has been back in court to get the exclusion zone altered so she can see life-long friends near her former home in Neasham Road.

Her lawyer John Turner told Judge Peter Armstrong that she was also due to have a heart operation soon and arrangements had been made for an ex-neighbour to look after her children.

Judge Armstrong ruled out a prosecution application to prevent Gregory from going into nearby Pounteys Close, but added: "I am minded to make a prohibition on staring at the complainants to avoid any future complaints of this nature."

Mr Turner asked the judge: "What's the difference between a stare and a glance?"

Staring at the lawyer, Judge Armstrong replied: "We all know what a stare is, Mr Turner. If there's any doubt, we might have to hear evidence."

Turning to Gregory, he asked: "Do you know what is meant by staring?" She said she did, and the judge added: "Let's hope you don't have to come back to court again."