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Court / Fined for homophobic insults against police officer

Lerwick Sheriff Court.

A TWENTY four year old woman has been fined £320 after admitting shouting and swearing at police officers in a homophobic and racially aggravated manner.

Patricia Doyle, of Lerwick’s Nordavatan, admitted behaving in a threatening or abusive manner in an incident at the town’s Hoofields on 2 July last year.

Lerwick Sheriff Court heard on Thursday that police had been called to her address by neighbours who had heard a disturbance.

Procurator fiscal Duncan Mackenzie said Doyle had been “highly agitated” when police arrived.

Both she and her partner were intoxicated and officers took the latter into their vehicle to try and establish what had been going on.

Doyle made an erroneous assumption that he was being arrested and was abusive towards police, ignoring repeated opportunities to stop shouting and swearing.

The fiscal said her outburst included the use of homophobic insults, while one policeman in attendance was Romanian and she was “mimicking that officer’s accent”.

Defence agent Tommy Allan said Doyle was a part-time emotional wellbeing and resilience officer and feared losing that role as a result of her court appearance.

At the time of the offence, she had lost her father and a close friend, was struggling with her mental health and “unwisely” using alcohol as a coping mechanism, the solicitor said.

She was “very drunk and upset” on the day in question and was “mortified” and “appalled by her behaviour”, Allan said, adding she was not someone who would normally use homophobic or racist language.

Sheriff Ian Cruickshank fined Doyle £300 and imposed a £20 victim surcharge.

If you have been affected by crime, help is available. Whether you are victim, a witness, or the accused, you can find independent, impartial, and confidential support in Shetland.

For victims of general crime:

For anyone affected by crime & harm seeking a restorative approach:

For anyone affected by gender-based violence, including domestic abuse, coercive control, stalking, sexual assault, and rape:

Shetland Women’s Aid

Phone: 01595 692070
Web: https://www.shetlandwa.org
Email: office@shetlandwa.org

The Compass Centre (Shetland Rape Crisis)

Phone: 01595 744402 or 08088 010302
Web: https://www.compasscentre.org
Email: contact@compasscentre.org

For anyone affected by substance use:

Shetland Recovery Hub and Community Network

Phone: 01595 744402
Web: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100075791869200
Email: recoveryhub@shetland.gov.uk

Shetland Alcohol & Drug Partnership

Phone: 01595 743060 or 07342 077789
Web: https://shetlandadp.org.uk
Email: shet.sadp@nhs.scot

Substance Use Recovery Service

Phone: 01595 743006

 
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