Sheriff jails man at Inverness Sheriff Court for kicking Police Scotland officer's face in Highland incident
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A 33-year-old Forres man who kicked a policeman in the face before spitting at other officers has been jailed for a total of three months at Inverness Sheriff Court.
Blair Cotter appeared by video link for sentencing by Sheriff Robert Frazer having previously admitted the police assault, culpable and reckless conduct by spitting, committed on July 5, 2021. He was on remand for over five months for that offence. Sentence had earlier been deferred for a drug treatment and testing order for which Cotter was deemed unsuitable by social workers.
He had also admitted an earlier charge of assaulting his partner in Dingwall's Dewar Square on June 1, 2020 by slapping her on the head and then striking her on the head with a roll of kitchen foil to her injury.
The offences committed last July began when two constables required assistance from another two to get Cotter under control in Church Street, Inverness.
Fiscal depute Martina Eastwood said that police had been called to a disturbance outside MacCallum's Bar in Union Street about 9pm.
The officers were given Cotter's name and went to look for him, before locating him in Church Street, Mrs Eastwood went on.
"He walked away and was asked to stop several times before he eventually did outside Lauder's Bar.
"He refused to co-operate and was taken to the ground. The officers required assistance and two others were quickly on the scene. But he rolled partially on to his back and kicked one in the face. Leg restraints had to be applied to stop him lashing out." the prosecutor went on.
Cotter, of Twinning Link, Forres and with former connections in Inverness and Nairn, was taken to Burnett Road Police Station where he spat several times at a custody officer but no contact was made.
Defence solicitor John MacColl said: "He had had a couple of pints but was not inebriated or under the influence of drugs, However he was disinhibited to a degree.
"Police wanted to speak to him on another matter for which he was not ultimately charged and he became non-compliant. He said he broke a rib when police piled on to him and he just kicked out.
"He had also been sprayed with PAVA in the face and as he was having his clothes removed In the police cell, there was a degree of difficulty between him and officers which resulted in some of his clothing having to be cut off and he was spitting out but at no-one in particular, hence culpable and reckless conduct."
Sheriff Frazer told Cotter that because of the time he had spent on remand, he would limit the sentence which would start immediately.
But he told him that assaulting police and spitting at them was serious and a jail sentence was appropriate because "you have a bad record which does you no favours, including a large number for violence in the past."
