A convicted rapist has admitted an “evil and wicked” assault on a man who was “winding him up” about his past convictions.
Darren Butler, 42, previously admitted punching Ernest Boundy on the head and kicking him on the body outside The Beath Inn, Cowdenbeath, in December last year.
Dunfermline Sheriff Court heard that his victim was talking loudly about Butler’s criminal history when they were both in another pub beforehand.
Butler was jailed for ten years in 2013 after being convicted by jury of a sickening series of sex attacks on women.
He raped three of his victims and carried out indecent assaults on a fourth.
He denied the offences, claiming he acted in self-defence, but was found guilty of 15 charges at the High Court in Edinburgh.
Lord Glennie said the women had been changed from bubbly personalities to being “wracked by fear, anxiety and depression”.
‘He is going to get it’
Butler, of Main Street, Lumphinnans, Cowdenbeath, appeared in the dock at Dunfermline and admitted carrying out the assault on Mr Boundy on December 17, last year.
Procurator fiscal depute Catherine Stevenson told the court that Butler and Mr Boundy both ended up in pub that evening after a “verbal altercation” at another establishment.
Butler was overheard by a witness outside The Beath Inn saying: “He is going to get it when he comes out”.
Ms Stevenson said the pair were seen pushing each other outside and the complainer fell to the ground and was punched.
She said Butler also kicked the man as he lay on the ground.
Police later arrived and Butler remained at the scene and told officers he was defending himself.
On being charged, Butler told police the man had “threatened his life” and so he used “appropriate force”.
‘No stranger to custody’
Defence lawyer Aime Allan said the original cause of disagreement was the complainer “talking rather loudly in the pub about Mr Butler’s previous convictions”.
The solicitor said Butler went to another pub and Mr Boundy followed.
She said her client was on the phone to a friend when the man approached him outside.
Ms Allan said Butler is “no stranger to custody” but has no other outstanding matters.
She said settling back into life at liberty “for a man who served a sentence as long as he has can be no easy feat”.
Sheriff Peter Anderson described Butler’s criminal past as “serious”.
The sheriff warned him he must walk away from anything turning into a strong disagreement.
He said he was persuaded not to send Butler back to jail.
Sheriff Anderson ordered him to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work, and placed him on a restriction of liberty curfew for three months. He will be supervised for a year.
The sheriff stressed this punishment was a direct alternative to prison.
He added: “I am imposing this punishment because, in particular, you were heard to say ‘He was going to get it,’ because it’s an indicator you were planning something evil and wicked, even though he had been winding you up.
“You need to learn to walk away from these things, you can not afford this”.
For the latest court cases across Tayside and Fife, join our Courts Facebook page.
