A “reformed character” who was caught in the street with an axe has been spared prison.
Hamilton Sheriff Court heard that Thomas O’Dwyer has been locked up on three separate occasions for carrying weapons.
The 27-year-old was back in the dock this week to admit having an axe in Tarbert Avenue, Wishaw, on May 26 last year.
O’Dwyer, of Flaxmill Avenue, Craigneuk, also admitted struggling with police officers trying to arrest him in Striven Crescent, Wishaw, that day.
Defence agent Bobby Reid said there have been “positive changes” in his client’s life since then.
Sheriff Ray Small noted O’Dwyer’s record for carrying weapons but acknowledged there had been a lengthy gap since his last conviction.
The Sheriff said: “He has a job and a partner.
"It makes you wonder why he was daft enough to carry an axe.
“It’s his reformed character that has saved him from custody.”
He told the accused: “I would be well entitled to impose custody, but I’m told you are now more mature and you had stayed out of trouble for five years.”
The Sheriff imposed a six-month electronic tagging order, banning O’Dwyer from leaving his home between 7pm and 7am each day.
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