Christopher Crotty, 38, of no fixed address, was jailed for 22 months at Liverpool Crown Court on Thursday after he admitted four aggravated public order offences and criminal damage. The court heard he had been released from prison just hours earlier after being handed a suspended sentence for a spate of thefts.
Incident at Wetherspoons
Merseyside Police were called to reports of an assault at the North Western, a JD Wetherspoon pub on Lime Street, shortly after 4.30pm on July 1 this year. When officers approached Crotty, he warned them he would "bite their noses off" and hurled homophobic slurs at them.
Prosecutor Bethany Leigh described how Crotty also "threatened to take a piece of" one officer before repeatedly spitting in the back of a police van while being transported into custody. The vehicle required specialist cleaning as a result. He answered no comment and refused to watch body worn camera footage during interview.
Background
The day before the incident, Crotty had been handed an 18-month imprisonment suspended for two years for charges including burglary, theft and attempted theft. That crime spree saw him jump into a taxi and threaten to shoot police officers after stealing a till from McDonald's. He had earlier stolen goods worth more than £10,000 while targeting the same shop eight times in a month.
He was also handed a criminal behaviour order banning him from a large portion of Liverpool city centre. Judge David Potter had warned him: "If you steal a single thing from a shop or enter the prohibited area for one minute, you will be breached and back in custody."
Defence
Callum Ross, defending, said Crotty was released at 6pm and went to the Whitechapel Centre for accommodation help, but it was closed. He walked around all night to avoid missing probation, but was told he was not registered on their system. He then panicked, went to Wetherspoons and relapsed.
Ross said Crotty "made the worst possible choice you could in that situation" and claimed police "rough handled him". He said Crotty's firm aspirations were to move away from drugs and alcohol abuse.
Sentence
Judge Potter said: "After much persuasion and hesitation, I was persuaded to impose a suspended sentence... You were fortunate on that occasion, but I was persuaded by the report from the Probation Service, which indicated there were indications that you were now in a position where you were going to abstain from substance misuse.
"Within hours of your release, you were back in police custody, having been found in a public house drunk and then, when challenged and arrested by police officers, you resorted to foul, disgusting, abusive and homophobic behaviour. I have watched myself the CCTV footage."
At this stage, Crotty remarked from the dock that he had been assaulted, adding: "You wouldn't have watched that bit, I take it." Judge Potter continued: "You reacted to your arrest with this torrent of abuse, committed within hours of your release. There is only one option, in the judgement of this court."
