Second chance for man found in Inverness with a scalpel and a knife
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A 43-year-old man will escape a jail sentence if he continues to stay away from drugs and crime.
Leslie Goodall, formerly of Strathmore Place, Thurso, but now back in Inverness, appeared before Sheriff Sara Matheson after previously pleading guilty to possessing a scalpel and a knife in a lane between the city's Culduthel Road and MacKay Road on August 9, 2022.
The court heard he told police: "Can't go into Hilton without being tooled up."
Goodall, who admitted a bad record of previous convictions, was currently on a drug treatment and testing order (DTTO) which has been running alongside several other cases.
However defence solicitor Rory Gowans told the court: "It is now going exceptionally well and he has made efforts himself by completing a 14-week detoxification in a rehabilitation centre."
Sheriff Matheson was impressed by Goodall's turnaround and told him: "You have a lot of potential. You are at a crossroads in your life and you need to stay on the path that you are at the moment."
She deferred sentence again on the new matters to continue to run alongside the DTTO which has only a few months left to run.
