A TEENAGER who assaulted a police officer and was caught with drugs on several occasions has been sentenced to 13 weeks’ youth detention.
The 16-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, swore and shouted abuse at Assistant Magistrate Peter Harris as he was led from the dock.
Mr Harris said that, in committing the offences, the teenager had broken probation and binding-over orders imposed for previous offences, and that custody was the only alternative.
The Youth Court heard yesterday that the previous orders had been made after the teenager was convicted of affray and common assault in 2021.
On 11 September last year he kicked and spat at a police officer in St Helier, while on 29 July, 11 September and 25 October he was caught with cannabis. He admitted the charges of assaulting a police officer, disorderly behaviour and three counts of possession of drugs.
Advocate Chris Baglin, defending, asked for the youth to be granted ‘one last chance’ to engage with the Probation Service.
He said: ‘It surely must be a better course of action before going to the most extreme penalty this court can impose.’
But Mr Harris said custody was the only sentence suitable. He said imprisonment could be imposed on offenders who did not respond to the alternatives, and added: ‘All the evidence points to him being unwilling to respond. While undesirable, it is nevertheless the only option that is reasonable in the circumstances.’
He sentenced him to 12 weeks for assaulting the police officer and to one week for the possession of cannabis on 25 October, with the terms to run consecutively.
There were no separate sentences for the other offences.
