A 43-year-old Ramsey man has been jailed for eight weeks for resisting arrest.

Gary John Beattie, of Claughbane Walk, bruised a police woman’s leg during the incident which took place on May 27.

Beattie was charged with assaulting a police officer but denied the offence.

He was found not guilty of the assault after a trial but guilty of the alternative charge of resisting arrest.

The offence put Beattie in breach of a suspended sentence imposed in August 2016 and High Bailiff Jayne Hughes added 10 weeks to the eight, meaning he was jailed for a total of 18 weeks.

The court heard that Beattie is also still on licence in relation to an eight-year sentence imposed in 2011.

The resisting arrest offence on May 27 was said to have involved the police woman’s leg suffering bruising caused by Beattie.

Defence advocate Stephen Wood said: ’The previous suspended sentence was, at the time of the commission of this offence, quite old.

’He was approaching the end of that suspended sentence.

’The officer found her leg pinned and suffered bruising. Mr Beattie has offered compensation.

’He didn’t intend to cause the bruise but accepts the officer had to intervene and suffered bruising as a result.

’It was indicated at the outset that he would plead guilty to a resisting arrest charge.

’I would urge your worship to give Mr Beattie the chance of keeping his liberty.’

Mr Wood went on to say that Beattie supported his mother who had health problems.

A probation report assessed Beattie as a low risk of reoffending but medium if alcohol was involved.

Mrs Hughes told Beattie that if the resisting arrest charge had stood alone she would not have imposed custody but said that she could not ignore the fact that he had a history of offences of violence.