A man who screamed violent threats after getting locked in the toilet at a family barbecue then turned his attention to police, telling officers he would shoot them.
Steven Lawson, 29, became irate after getting locked in his aunt’s toilet as the barbecue got into full swing without him.
He then made threats to “stab” other party-goers before making it free from the bathroom.
When police turned up Lawson threatened to shoot and stab them – stating: “you’re lucky you’re not getting shot, man. Boom! Boom!”
Lawson’s solicitor told the court his client had since apologised to his aunt for his behaviour.
Fiscal depute Christy Ward said the disturbance happened on June 18 this year at an address on Garthdee Drive in Aberdeen.
However, the get-together soon turned sour when Lawson became trapped in the bathroom
“During the barbecue, one of the guests went to the bathroom and heard the accused complain about being locked in the toilet,” Ms Ward said.
“As he became angry and aggressive, the accused stated, ‘ I will f**king stab you’.”
Lawson finally managed to get out of the bathroom but continued screaming at those in attendance at the party.
When police officers arrived, Lawson turned his anger on them by making threats to shoot and stab them.
He told the police: “I will stab the lot of you, I swear to God” and “you’re lucky you’re not getting shot, man. Boom! Boom!”
Lawson also attempted to bite one of the officers on the arm as they tried to calm him down.
He pleaded guilty to two charges of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner and one further charge of assault against a police officer.
‘He shouldn’t have reacted in this way
Defence agent Neil McRobert told the court that his client “accepts that he was at his aunt’s house and that alcohol was consumed”.
He said: “Mr Lawson’s recollection of the incident is not great but he accepts what happened when the police attended.
“His position is that the police were a bit heavy-handed, but he shouldn’t have reacted in this way.
“He has subsequently apologised to his aunt for his behaviour.”
Sheriff William Summers described Lawson’s offences as “troubling”.
“Police officers should be allowed to carry out their jobs without dealing with what you visited upon them,” he said.
“You have directly analogous previous offences and if you carry on like this it’s only a matter of time until a custodial sentence is imposed by this court.”
Sheriff Summers sentenced Lawson, of Rosehill Drive, Aberdeen, to a 12-month community payback order with 180 hours of unpaid work.
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