A Perth mother reported her teenage son to police – then assaulted the officer who tried to arrest him.
Constable Andrew Beattie was repeatedly punched in the head when he tried to stop the woman’s son from jumping out of a window during a Valium-fuelled outburst.
Both mum and son appeared in the dock at Perth Sheriff Court on Wednesday.
The pair, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted behaving in a threatening or abusive manner – likely to cause fear or alarm – at an address in the city’s Tulloch area on December 7 2020.
They shouted, swore, adopted an aggressive demeanor and made derogatory remarks towards police officers.
The mother further admitted assaulting PC Beattie.
Courtroom not a café
Sheriff Richard McFarlane berated the pair when they entered the dock.
Noting the mum was using her mobile phone and her son was carrying a juice bottle, he said: “This is not a café, you know.”
He deferred sentence for background reports.
‘Get out of my house’
Fiscal depute Nicole Lewis said that the woman reported her son to police at 9pm.
“She said he was kicking off,” she said.
“Police arrived and could hear the son screaming and swearing.
“They entered the location and the accused (teenager) became aggressive.”
He ranted: “F*** off you mongos, don’t come near me” and “I hate you f***ing c***s”.
When she saw officers attempt to arrest her boy, the mother then shouted at police: “Get out of my house.”
The teenager then opened a window and police were concerned he was going to jump out, Ms Lewis said.
“PC Beattie took hold of him and pulled him away,” she said.
“At that point, the mother shouted: ‘Get off him’ and lashed out with her her fists.”
Self-medication
Solicitor Pauline Cullerton, representing the son, said her client had been “self-medicating” with Valium.
He was anxious about appearing as a witness at an upcoming court case, she said.
“Although he can’t remember much about this, he accepts full responsibility,” said Ms Cullerton.
“He said his actions were stupid but puts his behaviour down to feeling stressed.”
Representing the mother, solicitor Paul Ralph said: “She hoped that police would come and simply remove her son from the property, but she got upset when she twigged that he was being arrested.”
He added: “She is deeply regretful of her actions.”
How dare you…
Sheriff McFarlane told the pair: “This is a serious matter.
“Given the nature of the charge, I must defer to consider sentencing options.”
He said to the teenager: “How dare you speak to police officers in this manner.
“There is not a hint of sorrow or remorse from you and I am not seeing it in your body language either.
“It’s completely unacceptable.”
The pair will be sentenced on February 23.
