Nightclub ban for rowdy

A FAR north man, who assaulted stewards at a Wick nightclub, has been banned from the premises for two years.
Unemployed Donald McPhee, 37, also admitted resisting arrest and a record, when he appeared from custody at the town’s sheriff court, yesterday.
He was granted bail and will return to court for sentence on December 17.
Trouble flared as McPhee, of 20 Traill Street, Castletown, was being escorted from the Waterfront nightclub, around 2am on Saturday. The accused was “unhappy” about being ejected and lashed out at doorman Alan Campbell, punching him on the head.
As they reached the entrance, he assaulted colleague Martin Henderson in a similar way, and began fighting with police arresting him.
David Barclay, prosecuting added: “At one stage there was a clash of head but, fortunately, it didn’t result in any injury.” He invited Sheriff Andrew Berry to consider making an order excluding the father-of- five from entering the Waterfront.
Sheriff Berry granted the order and suggested that McPhee who previously caused a disturbance at the nightclub, as recent as October, might not be welcome there, even after it expired.
The sheriff, who called for a background report, granted the accused bail with a 7pm-7am curfew daily and warned him about making himself available when checks were being made by the police saying: “It won’t be acceptable to say you didn’t hear them because you were in the shower, or the television was too loud or you had too much to drink or you had taken tablets.”

Flexy curfew allows teen to put to sea

A SHERIFF has made a teenager’s curfew order flexible to allow him to pursue a career at sea.
Seventeen-year-old Liam Robertson was ordered to carry out 100 hours unpaid community service after he admitted breaching a bail order, imposed on October 23, by failing to comply with one of its conditions.
He didn’t respond to a routine curfew check by police, five days later.
Solicitor Jo McDonald said that Robertson had spent three weeks on remand at a young offenders institution and had been “clearly affected” by it and did not wish to repeat the experience.
Ms McDonald described the accused as “an intelligent man” who had a good relationship with his parents and had secured a berth on a fishing boat and was due to join it for its last trip before the festive season, next week.
Robertson, of 12 Ackergill Crescent, Wick, was given permission to vary the hours of his 7pm-7aam curfew, a condition of bail imposed previously, while at sea, and report the changes, to his community service supervisor.

Accused threatened to assault sheriff


A THURSO teenager has been ordered to carry out 40 hours community service as his punishment for making a threatening remark about the Wick sheriff.
Paul Cannop had been in the local court with two friends and was leaving the building on April 12 when he made the offending comment, Dornoch Sheriff Court heard yesterday.
Witnesses heard the 18-year-old say: “I am going to kick that sheriff’s throat in”
One of the witnesses reported the matter to the police.
Cannop, of 21 Holborn Avenue, Thurso, admitted behaving in a threatening manner. He was sentenced to a three months community payback order which included the unpaid community service.
The case was heard at Dornoch Sheriff Court “for obvious reasons”.