A man has described his own actions as “childish” after he admitted kicking his shoe at a police officer.
Ryan Ritchie was being spoken to by cops on Maberly Street, Aberdeen on May 28 2020 when he made off on foot resulting in officers having to call for assistance.
Upon being apprehended and searched, the 28-year old then lashed out at the officers and punted his footwear towards Constable Paul Mellor, which saw the shoe travel a short distance before striking him in his groin.
Ritchie also admitted an additional charge that he became aggressive towards police and used a homophobic slur against one officer at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary on April 4 2020.
Accused became ‘non-compliant’ with officers
Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard that two officers had stopped Ritchie in the Granite City on an unrelated matter, however the 28-year old soon became argumentative with police.
Fiscal depute Ross Canning told the court: “It was during this search of the accused that he became non-compliant with the two officers.
“He kicked his shoe off towards Constable Mellor from a distance of four feet and the shoe struck the constable to the groin.”
Defence agent Caitlin Pirie told the court that Ritchie had been under the influence of the drug Diazepam at the time due to suffering from both attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and anxiety.
She said: “He has had prior negative experiences with the police and attempted to flee from them.
“He accepts that he lashed out with his feet and struck the officer with his shoe.
“He knows that he is solely responsible and has described his own behaviour as childish.”
‘Officers should be able to go about their business without being subjected to abuse’
Referring to the separate charge of using a homophobic slur, Ms Pirie said Ritchie had used the term “in frustration” and “accepts that it was derogatory”.
She added that Ritchie’s previous convictions and behaviour have all been linked to his drug abuse.
Sheriff William Summers told the 28-year old: “It has been said on many occasions in this court that police officers should be able to go about their business without being subjected to the sort of abuse that you engaged in on these occasions.”
He sentenced Ritchie, of Thistle Drive, Portlethen, to a 12-month community payback order with a supervision requirement.
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