A sheriff has criticised Moray Council’s policy of placing homeless people in places with bars after a woman with alcohol problems vandalised a hotel bedroom.
Mary Wilson, known as McGregor, was deemed homeless after court bail conditions stopped her from entering her own street so she was put up in the Station Hotel in Hopeman instead.
But within moments of arriving there, the 36-year-old mum had sunk two double vodkas at the hotel bar before checking into her room.
She wound up back in trouble with the law for the second time in days when she caused a disturbance and smashed a £245 television.
The decision to house her at the licensed hotel was called into question by Sheriff Gordon Fleetwood, who said he had “severe doubts about the wisdom” of the policy.
Sheriff Fleetwood asked McGregor’s solicitor: “Am I right in understanding Moray Council arranges accommodation for homeless people in hotels with licensed premises?”
Defence agent Matthew O’Neill confirmed: “I was surprised by this too, m’Lord.”
‘I have severe doubts about the wisdom of that’
The sheriff later addressed local authority social workers in the courtroom, adding: “I have severe doubts about the wisdom of placing persons who clearly have dependencies, like problems with alcohol, in premises that serve alcohol.
“I think Moray Council should be looking very seriously at that as part of their policy-making as to what they are going to do in the future.”
A Moray Council spokesperson said: “The majority of our temporary accommodation is provided within self-contained flats in the community.
“Regrettably though, when we need to make emergency placements to alleviate homelessness, options can be limited.
“We would prefer not to use licensed premises but if this is the only way we can fulfil the statutory duty to accommodate those who are homeless, we may do so for a short period.”
A spokeswoman for the Station Hotel declined to comment on the sheriff’s remarks.
Court told of reason for hotel stay
The court heard how McGregor had been arrested and spent the night in custody after she hurled abuse at her neighbours in Grange Road, Kinloss, on June 3 this year.
Fiscal depute Karen Poke said there had been “ongoing issues” between the couple and their two-doors-down neighbour McGregor for at least a year.
“They have escalated to the point that they have had CCTV installed at the front and rear of the house,” she said.
The court heard the couple had been out cleaning their burger van just before 1pm when McGregor walked past and started shouting insults at them both.
Passing police were flagged down and shown a two-and-a-half-minute-long recording of the incident captured on the CCTV.
When McGregor appeared in court two days later she was granted bail but banned from going near the couple, and therefore her own home, so Moray Council organised a room at the Station Hotel instead.
When she turned up there at 6pm on June 9 staff noted she was “intoxicated but behaving fine”.
But she immediately went to the bar and drank two double vodkas then went to her room.
Drunkenly damaged room
Staff heard shouting and swearing coming from her room and asked her to keep the noise down.
But moments later they had to return after hearing a “loud smash” and discovered the room’s television smashed on the floor.
This time police were called and she was taken into custody again.
The damaged television cost the hotel £245, the court heard.
Appearing from prison she admitted culpable and reckless conduct, behaving in a threatening or abusive manner and breaching her bail conditions.
Temptation of hotel bar was ‘too much’
McGregor’s defence agent Matthew O’Neill said alcohol underpinned each of the incidents.
He said when she got to the hotel the “temptation of it having a bar was too much”.
“She was so drunk she fell over and knocked over the television,” he added.
Meanwhile, she had “reacted badly” to her neighbours due to being under the influence and having run out of her medication.
Sheriff Fleetwood liberated McGregor, of Grange Road, Kinloss, and allowed her back to her own home on the proviso she keeps away from her neighbours.
He also handed her a two-year supervision order and told her to repay the hotel £145.
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