Man spent night in cells after littering
Court Reporter A MAN who stopped for pizza after a couple of beers found himself locked up for the night when he was caught carrying a knife.
James Guthrie would never have come to the attention of the police had he not thrown away his rubbish.
Glasgow Sheriff Court was told that plain-clothed officers were on mobile patrol in Saracen Street on August 27, last year, when they spotted the accused at around 9.45pm.
Guthrie, 32, was stopped after he was seen dropping litter.
He initially dismissed the plainclothed coppers, not believing who they were, and continued to walk along with his pizza.
The officers then showed Guthrie their warrant card and arrested him for another matter.
When arriving at the city centre police station, Guthrie admitted: “I’m staying here tonight, I might as well tell you I’ve got a knife in my back pocket.”
In defence it was explained that Guthrie had the Stanley knife in his possession as he’d been working on lino in his mum’s house earlier that day.
Completely forgetting that he had the blade on him, he decided to go for a pizza after enjoying a couple of cans of beer.
If Guthrie had gone straight home he would have avoided prosecution, however his excuse was not deemed reasonable and he was charged with having the knife in a public place.
His lawyer stated that Guthrie accepted full responsibility and knew he was in the wrong. Sheriff Barry Divers fined Guthrie, of Lochsloy Court, £450.