Inverness man tackled by police over ‘hammer in his pocket’
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Police were called to a block of flats after a concerned resident contacted them about a neighbour’s aggressive behaviour.
And when officers arrived at Springfield Gardens, Inverness in the early hours of December 30, Jools Grant (23) appeared at his door almost at the same time as his neighbour.
Inverness Sheriff Court heard Grant had a hammer in his back pocket, causing police to take him to the ground and disarm him.
Grant denied possessing a weapon in a public place but offered a plea to conducting himself in a disorderly manner, which was originally rejected by prosecutors.
However, during his trial the plea was accepted and Grant was sentenced to two months in prison, backdated to December 30 when he was remanded in custody.
As a result, he was released immediately.
The court heard evidence from his neighbour that he had been accused by Grant of smashing his window and then heard loud banging on his door after he retreated inside.
“I called the police and when they arrived I saw him at the door and he was not co-operating with them,” he said. “They got him on the ground and tried to take a hammer away from him.”
PC Keith Whitelaw told the court: “We got a call and, when we arrived, we could hear a disturbance. We went to check, but the shouting calmed down.”
He said when they knocked on his neighbour’s door, Grant appeared “shouting and clearly drunk”.
PC Whitelaw continued: “He became more aggressive and put his hand behind his back. I could see a handle in his hand. We took hold of him and brought him to the ground. It was a hammer in his back pocket.”
Solicitor John MacColl said Grant had been hanging up a picture of his late father when police arrived.
“He had been told to take it out of his pocket by his mother and was in the process of doing so when the police took hold of him,” he said. “I make no criticism of the police for taking this action. Mr Grant drew an inference that the neighbour had broken his window having seen him below it outside soon after it had been smashed.”
Read more court reports.
