“We don’t want to set him up to fail"

Saturday 21 December 2019

A 39-year-old with a history of mental illness has been given a "very rare opportunity" by the Royal Court to avoid jail and seek treatment after shouting at a woman while brandishing a knife.

The man – whom Express has chosen not to name due to his mental state – has instead been put on probation, and will also have to engage with any program or intervention set out by the Mental Health and Drugs and Alcohol services.

The judgment for the incident on 1 September, which prompted a single charge of 'grave and criminal assault', was handed down in the Royal Court yesterday.

Crown Advocate Richard Pedley said the victim, who was pretending to sleep, saw the man was standing over her when she opened her eyes. He was holding a sheathed knife in his right hand.

She shouted: “What the hell are you doing? Get away from me with that knife.” 

Pictured: The case was heard by the Bailiff, Tim Le Cocq, who was sitting with Jurats Collette Crill and Gareth Hughes.

The man didn’t use the knife on the woman, who was not injured. He then left the room.

The woman subsequently phoned the police, with the Crown Advocate describing her as “clearly in some distress at this point". 

When officers went to arrest the man, he made unsolicited comments, such as: “That’s all night in your cells to sober up. I’ve done f*** all wrong."

In his police interview, he said he hadn’t threatened the woman, adding: “I was threatening the people that are in my head, you know.” 

The man said he had been keeping the knife by his bed for some time. He also admitted shouting at the woman and using abusive language, causing her to be afraid. 

Pictured: The man said he had drunk eight or nine cans the day of the incident.

The man explained that earlier that day, he had been arguing with the woman “fighting and screaming at each other”. He said he had drunk eight or nine cans from about 16:00 that afternoon, noting it had gotten him really drunk because he hadn’t consumed alcohol in two weeks.

The Court heard the man had previous convictions for common assault and a history of mental illness. 

His variable mental health along with substance misuse were part of a series of factors that put him at a high risk of reconviction according to the probation service.

Crown Advocate Pedley said the normal course of action would have been to sentence the man to 18 months in his prison, but added this would mean he would come out of prison without support, and be “back to square one".

“We don’t want to set him up to fail,” the Crown Advocate said, before recommending a two-year probation order with a treatment component.

He also suggested that the man returned to court regularly so that they could review his progress, as well as an exclusion order banning him from licensed premises for two years.

Pictured: Advocate James Bell was representing the man.

Defending, Advocate James Bell agreed with the Crown’s recommendations, telling Court that the man regretted his actions, which he recognised had caused a “frightful moment" for the woman.

Advocate Bell described the case as “exceptional” due to the man’s longstanding diagnosis of mental illness, adding he had been on a significant decline at the time, which had brought “matters to a head”.

“His health has significantly improved since then,” he said, adding later on: “He has every intention to comply with the order.”

The lawyer also handed a letter of remorse to the Court on behalf of his client.

Returning the Court’s decision, the Bailiff, Tim Le Cocq, who was sitting with Jurats Collette Crill and Gareth Hughes, noted that the exceptional circumstances in the case had prompted the court to take a different approach than they normally would.

Pictured: The Bailiff said that exceptional circumstances in the case had prompted the court to take a different approach.

He said there was “real cause for some optimism” as the man had voluntarily started treatment with the appropriate bodies whilst in custody.

He made the orders suggested by the Crown Advocate and told the man: “Please take this as a very rare opportunity, possibly the last opportunity to put your life in order and secure the treatment you need... to live as a valuable member of society and committed member of your family."

He urged the man to engage with any program or intervention deemed appropriate by the Mental Health and the Alcohol and Drugs services.

The Bailiff also said the man would have to abstain from alcohol for the next two years and to take breath tests when required.

The Crown had also sought the forfeiture and destruction of the knife, which was granted.