A man has been given a jail warning after making “ridiculous” nuisance calls to emergency services over burning his steak, falling out of bed, and his heating not working.
Laurence Galvin was lambasted by a sheriff and his own solicitor over his antics at a time when emergency crews are already under pressure due to the pandemic.
The 58-year-old admitted a total of six charges over the matter, and was told he is now on his “last chance” by Sheriff Graham Buchanan when he appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court for sentencing.
He was handed a 12-month supervision order but warned any further similar offending would see him locked up.
Fiscal depute Alan Townsend told Aberdeen Sheriff Court: “On a number of occasions he called emergency services. He often seems to be intoxicated. They’re certainly not emergencies.”
Sheriff Buchanan said: “I think on one occasion he had burnt his steak.”
The fiscal replied: “I think that might be the case.”
Galvin, of Gordon Place, Ellon, admitted, for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety to police officers and ambulance technicians, making phone calls to 999 without a valid reason while knowing there was no emergency between September 30 and October 2 this year.
He also admitted a similar charge regarding calls to 999 and NHS 24 on November 18.
Galvin further pled guilty to three charges of breaching bail conditions not to phone 999 or NHS 24 unless there was a genuine emergency, by phoning NHS 24 and 999 on December 4, and then 999 again on December 5.
And finally Galvin admitted phoning 999 when no emergency existed on December 11 for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety to police officers and paramedics.
Defence agent Mike Monro told the court: “Despite matters being explained to him he continued to behave in the way stated.
“We’re all enduring 2020. If he wanted to make the situation worse he couldn’t have picked a better time by making the most ridiculous calls, that he’d fallen out of bed, he’d burnt his steak, that his heating wasn’t working properly.”
Mr Monro said his client had previously served in the military and had a good background, but added: “Then he turned to alcohol.”
The solicitor went on: “This is a 58-year-old man. I’ve been as hard as nails with him.
“There’s one way the emergency services can not have their valuable time lost on the accused and that is by locking him up.
“When I speak to him he’s apologetic. This only happens when he’s drunk. That’s a matter of his choosing and he knows that.
“If he is going to avoid custody I’d urge m’lord to impose a community payback order.”
Sheriff Buchanan said: “All these matters come together today just before Christmas.
“It’s, without doubt, Mr Galvin has numerous issues to do with his health physically and mentally.
“The emergency services simply cannot have their time wasted in this way.
“He needs to understand if this goes on the only solution to deal with continued offending like this will be to impose a prison sentence.
“The time he’s in custody he won’t be able to waste the time of the emergency services.”
Addressing Galvin directly, Sheriff Buchanan said: “This is a situation in which I think you’re going to get, today, your last chance to pull yourself together and stop making these calls.
“You are wasting the time of the emergency services and that means they can’t deal with true emergency situations.
“You will need to understand if this carries on you will end up in prison and that will be a pretty sad state of affairs.”
He ordered Galvin to be supervised for a year as a direct alternative to custody.
The sheriff warned: “If there were to be any further offences of this kind committed you could expect to receive a sentence of imprisonment.”
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