Abusive to police after offer to take defendant home

Thomas Edward Patrick Kelly, of Iniscairn Road, pleaded guilty to disorderly behaviour on July 3. He also admitted a charge of simple drunk.

Derry Magistrate’s Court heard police received a report of an unresponsive male lying on the road. Officers attended and found the 28-year-old. There was a strong smell of alcohol and police were unable to wake him up.

An ambulance was tasked but before it arrived Kelly came around. He was unsteady on his feet and appeared to be unaware of his surroundings.

Police offered to take the defendant home and he became abusive to an officer about his family.

Kelly was left outside his home and he stood in the middle of the road shouting at police.

A woman came out of Kelly’s house and took him in.

Defence solicitor Paddy MacDermott said that police were ‘doing the role of good Samaritan’ and in his drunken state Kelly couldn’t realise this.

He added that the defendant had been at a house party the night before and was on his way home when this incident occurred.

Mr MacDermott said Kelly had consumed too much alcohol and was ‘absolutely mortified’ at the way he behaved towards police who were only trying to help him.

Adjourning sentencing for a Probation Report, District Judge Barney McElholm said ‘What amazes me is how people on basic level benefits, survive at all given the paltry sum they get. How can people like Kelly afford to go out and get so completely and utterly drunk?’

The judge said Kelly’s behaviour was ‘boorish, ungrateful and discourteous’.

Kelly will appear in court again on September 23.