A MAN who banged on the door and windows of his estranged wife’s home was admonished.
First offender Norman Scott, of Synton Parkhead Farm Cottages, Selkirk, pleaded guilty to refusing to leave and demanding entry to a flat at Bourtree Place, Hawick, on February 16.
Procurator fiscal Graham Fraser said Scott had been separated from his wife for three years, adding: “He is a motor engineer and his wife still does his book-keeping.”
Text messages had been exchanged shortly after midnight and the woman was woken at about 8.20am by Scott banging at the door.
“She told him to go away, but he told her, ‘Let me in through the door, or I will come through the window’,” continued Mr Fraser.
“He told police he had gone there to discuss texts and didn’t mean to frighten anybody,” added Mr Fraser.
Defending, Alison Marshall said her 53-year-old client and his wife were in new relationships, adding: “The relationship with his wife is still very amicable. This all stemmed from innocent text messages.”
Sentence is deferred
A husband sent his wife abusive text messages, including one hoping she crashed while on a car journey.
Michael Clark, 29, of McLaren Court, Hawick, admitted sending offensive text messages to his wife on various occasions on December 13 and December 14 last year.
At a previous hearing, procurator fiscal Graham Fraser said the couple had been in a relationship for 11 years, marrying in 2010, but they broke up last year.
“The break-up did not go well,” he explained.
Clark sent his wife 24 abusive and distasteful texts, calling her names. He also sent one saying: “Hope you crash”.
Defending, Ross Dow said: “He and his wife broke up and he struggled to come to terms with it, and this was the consequence.”
Last Friday at Jedburgh Sheriff Court, Mat Patrick, representing the accused, described the offence as a one-off incident. He said Clark was working as a taxi driver.
Sentence was deferred for six months.
£60,000 THEFT TRIAL
A Jedburgh woman who denies stealing £60,000 from a 68-year-old man will stand trial by jury at Selkirk Sheriff Court on March 24.
Teresa Brown, 44, of Howden Road, appeared on indictment and pleaded not guilty to repeatedly using bank cards and PIN numbers without authority to pay for goods and services totalling £60,000 while employed as a cleaner at a house in Kirk Yetholm between October 2011 and August 2012.
FIVE MONTHS FOR THIEF
A thief was jailed for five months.
Andrew Atkinson, 26, of Woodstock Avenue, Galashiels, admitted stealing a television from Asda in the town’s Currie Road on November 20 last year, while on an ASBO (antisocial behaviour order) and bail.
He was fined £200 – with the alternative period of imprisonment imposed – after he pleaded guilty to possession of heroin at Paton Street, Galashiels, on September 8 last year.
JURY DATE FOR HAWICK MAN
A 20-YEAR-OLD man who denies attacking a woman in Peebles and threatening to kill her will stand trial by jury on March 24.
Christopher Robertson, of Ramsay Road, Hawick, appeared on indictment facing an allegation that he assaulted a woman at North Street on May 5 last year, rendering her unconscious, and presenting a knife at her. He also denies assaulting the same woman on May 19 last year, restricting her breathing, threatening to kill her, removing her inhaler and repeatedly refusing to return it.
MUST APPEAR IN PERSON
A GALASHIELS drug offender had sentence deferred until April 7 to appear personally.
Kirsty Lawrence, 30, of Croft Street, admitted possession of heroin at Church Street, Galashiels, on January 7.
BAILED WITH CONDITION
A Melrose man will stand trial on June 24.
Daniel Whigham, 25, of Eildon Crecent, pleaded not guilty to behaving in a threatening or abusive manner at his home on February 21, and sending messages to a woman threatening to post pictures of her of a sexual nature on the internet.
An intermediate hearing was set for May 27. Whigham was bailed with a condition not to contact the woman.
FRAUD ALLEGATION
A MAN alleged to have committed a benefits fraud totalling more than £28,000 has had his trial adjourned until July 1.
William Howie, 50, of King Street, Galashiels, denies obtaining £13,629 income support, £12,357 housing benefit and £1,779 council tax benefit to which he was not entitled between August 2007 and September 2011. He also denies obtaining £897 income support to which he was not entitled between August 2012 and October 2012.
An intermediate hearing was set for June 2.
CASE IS CONTINUED
A STICHILL man appeared in private, facing two charges of fraud.
Desmond Lindsay, 50, of Stichill Craigend, appeared on petition and made no plea or declaration. The case was continued and Lindsay released on bail.
REPORTS WANTED
A carer who ill-treated a 90-year-old patient at a nursing home had sentence deferred until April 11 for reports.
First offender Linda McLardie, 49, of Howdenbank, Hawick, admitted shouting at the elderly man, who has since died, and repeatedly striking him on the nose. The offence happened on various occasions between June 2012 and August 2013 at Knowesouth Nursing Home, Jedburgh.
FINED £100
A Hawick man who behaved in a threatening or abusive manner at a house in the town was fined £100.
Stephen Norman, of Wellington Court, admitted shouting and swearing at Sandbed on May 17.
The court heard 49-year-old Norman had been of good behaviour during a six-month period of deferred sentence.
CANNABIS CHARGE
Four Hawick men appeared in private, charged on petition with being concerned in the supply of cannabis.
Mark Middleton, 25; Darrell Shearman, 21; Robert Walker, 23; and Gavin Rae, 22, were released on bail after making no plea or declaration.
The offence is alleged to have taken place in Galashiels on March 15.
REMANDED IN CUSTODY
A 23-year-old Selkirk woman was remanded in custody.
Zoe Forsyth appeared in private on petition, charged with committing an offence under the Emergency Workers Act at an address in Selkirk, and threatening or abusive behaviour at Borders General Hospital.
She made no plea or declaration.
TEXT-MESSAGE OFFENDER
A man who sent a friend late-night text messages saying he was aroused by a naked two-year-old girl and wanted to touch her has had sentence deferred for six months.
Lee McDowall, 25, of Tweedbank, was placed on the Sex Offenders Register when he originally appeared from custody in December.
The “vulnerable” adult who received the messages was so concerned about the content of the messages he showed them to his support worker the following morning and police were called.
McDowall admitted sending offensive or obscene text messages from his home in Jura Drive on December 27/28.
At a previous hearing defence lawyer Iain Burke said McDowall’s comments had been entirely fictional and that he was under the influence of alcohol at the time.
TREATMENT ORDER
A Galashiels man has been placed on a two-year Drug Treatment and Testing Order (DTTO).
William Kennedy, 29, of Croft Street, admitted stealing boxed sets from Boots in Gala Water Retail Park, Galashiels, on December 5 last year, and also stealing tobacco from Tweedbank Late shop on December 8.
MUST DO UNPAID WORK
Failing to comply with a bail curfew resulted in Daniel Stewart being sentenced to 130 hours of unpaid work.
Stewart, 23, of Lovell Court, Hawick, was ordered to do 60 hours of unpaid work after he admitted breaching a bail curfew at his then home in High Tweed Mill, Galashiels, on May 31 last year. He was sentenced to a further 70 hours after he admitted a similar offence on May 10, 2013.