Derry man who called police 'scumbags' after search sentenced
A man who called police ‘scumbags’ after they searched him has been sentenced at Derry Magistrate's Court for disorderly behaviour and resisting police.
Lee Doherty (34) of no fixed abode in Derry was arrested on April 17 after police stopped to check on the safety of a man Doherty was seen to be pointing his finger at while stomping on the footpath.
He appeared before the Magistrate’s Court in Derry on Monday.
The court was told that when police arrived it was suspected that Doherty may have been under the influence of drugs as he was behaving erratically, shouting and swearing and spitting on the ground.
After finding nothing, police told him that he was free to go and he began to shout again, calling the police 'scumbags'.
He was subsequently arrested for disorderly behavior and attempted to resist police when they tried to put him in the back of their vehicle, eventually having to be restrained.
Defence barrister Dean Mooney said that Doherty had a 'bad record' but the barrister added that police were not responding to a call and had simply stopped to search for drugs.
He added that there were no injuries as a result of the incident and there was nothing of a violent nature, calling the incident 'very much at the low end' for the offences.
District Judge Oonagh Mullan noted Doherty's extensive record for offences of a similar nature, including 36 assaults on police, sentencing him to four months in custody, suspended for twelve months and ordering him to pay a fine of £100.