A sheriff has branded a Kinross man’s behaviour towards police officers as “imbecilic” after hearing how he made multiple violent threats towards them and tried unsuccessfully to set his dog on them.
Perth Sheriff Court previously heard Michael Horne lifted his Staffordshire bull terrier over his shoulder and ordered it to attack officers who turned up at his property while they were searching for someone else over a year and a half ago.
However his command achieved nothing as the court was told that rather than attack the officers, the dog merely wandered over to them “in a friendly manner” and they were able to pick it up and put it in a police vehicle without so much as a single bark or bite.
The court previously heard Horne repeatedly uttered threats towards constables including “I’m going to stab you” when they appeared outside his house on Avenue Road on July 2, 2020 looking for an associate of his.
Going over the incident again last week fiscal depute Stewart Hamilton reminded the court Horne told officers “I’m going to see you in the street and f***ing kick your c*** in” and “I’m going to make it my life to f*** you up”.
Mr Hamilton said it was after uttering these specific threats towards police that Horne hoisted his dog up into the air and told it to “f***ing get them”.
“The dog had approached the police in a friendly manner and was placed in a police van,” he said.
Mr Hamilton said Horne then continued uttering threats towards officers.
He said Horne then lunged at constables several times and they decided to call for back up.
The court heard Horne eventually surrendered after said back up arrived but that he continued to make violent threats towards officers while he was being taken to Dunfermline Police Station in the back of a police vehicle.
Horne (23), of Avenue Road, Kinross, previously admitted behaving in a threatening or abusive manner by acting in an aggressive manner, repeatedly shouting and swearing, charging towards police officers, uttering offensive remarks and threats of violence, refusing to desist when asked to do so and directing a dog to assault them.
Defence solicitor Billy Somerville said last Wednesday in mitigation: “He is a different person now.”
Sheriff Euan Duthie told Horne: “This was an appalling incident, imbecilic, in fact.”
He sentenced him to complete 120 hours of unpaid work in the community and placed him under supervision for a year.
