A Paisley man who kicked a car wing mirror off and tried to bite a police officer has avoided a jail term.
Dale Lockhart, 27, was heavily under the influence of alcohol when he booted the motor before being arrested and attempting to bite the cop.
On August 25 last year, Lockhart turned up drunk at a neighbour’s house in Glencoats Drive in the middle of the afternoon; made homophobic slurs and repeatedly banged on the window.
Procurator fiscal depute Carly McLeod told Paisley Sheriff Court today: “Around 2pm on August 25, the accused attended at the home address of Frank McMillan and sat on the step at the front door.
“Mr McMillan observed the accused and asked him to move from the step, which he initially refused to do so.
“Lockhart then became abusive shouting and swearing calling McMillan a ‘paedophile’ and a 'p***er'.
“Mr McMillan made several requests for the accused to leave and he refused.
“Two further witnesses saw the accused then standing in the middle of the roadway shouting and swearing and directing his conduct towards McMillan.
“Lockhart then returned to the property and banged on the window of McMillan’s house.
“The police were contacted at this point.
“Lockhart walked towards Dalskeith Road where he kicked a vehicle causing the wing mirror to break off.”
Court heard that police officers attended and traced Lockhart who matched the description given to them by witnesses.
Cops noted Lockhart to be “heavily under the influence of alcohol” and that he appeared “unsteady” on his feet and that his speech was “slurred.”
Ms McLeod added: “While en route to Greenock police station, the accused attempted to bite PC McGlynn’s left hand.
“PC McGlynn pulled away while still restraining the accused in order to avoid being bitten.
“The accused was restrained the rest of the journey and he was processed at the staion in the usual way and told he would be released and made subject to a report when he was sober.”
Defence agent Michael McKeown told the court Lockhart is “apologetic” for his behaviour and added: “He is able to identify the issues that cause his offending and that’s alcohol and substance misuse.
“He has no recollection of the incident due to his level of intoxication.
“He has expressed remorse and although he understands it’s no excuse, but in the course of his arrest, his thumb was dislocated and he was subject to discomfort and he reacted badly.
“He is staying with his uncle in Glencoats Drive on the understanding that he isn’t drinking or using substances and that’s because his uncle has experienced his ill behaviour when he is under the influence.”
The Paisley Daily Express previously told how Lockhart forced his way into McMillan’s house in October last year and demanded he give him £10 before threatening to stab him.
Lockhart was sentenced to 14 months for the incident involving a man who he thought of as a “father figure”.
Sentencing, Sheriff Lindsay Kooner said: “There is no excuse for the type of behaviour you exhibited on August 25 last year. No doubt you caused some distress to the neighbours in this street.
“I'm prepared to give you the opportunity, as a direct alternative to custody, to prove you can cooperate with a community payback order as I trust you don’t want to go back to custody.”
Sheriff Kooner made Lockhart subject to supervision of the social work department for 12 months and ordered that he carries out 225 hours of unpaid work within the community.
A review hearing was assigned for January 16, 2023.
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