Ballymena court is told man with knife asked PSNI officers to shoot him
A man with a knife asked police to shoot him, a court in Ballymena has been told.
Details were given to Ballymena Magistrates' Court regarding Jason Coulter (23), of Sandmount Drive in Galgorm.
He pleaded guilty to charges relating to August 5 last year including possessing a knife as an offensive weapon.
He also made a threat to kill a man and woman; he assaulted the man; and he assaulted two police officers.
The defendant also pleaded guilty to possessing drugs - diazepam, pregabalin and clonazepam.
He appeared at court via video link from prison.
A prosecutor told the court that in August the defendant had been taken to Antrim Area Hospital by ambulance and while there he was obstructive.
His mother collected him from the hospital and he began to lash out at her in a car. He was demanding tablets "and if he didn't get them he would stab her and her partner", the prosecutor added.
When he arrived home Coulter continued to demand drugs and punched his mother's partner.
The defendant lifted a kitchen knife and when police arrived the defendant had the knife in his hand and he approached police and he "asked them to shoot him", the prosecutor continued.
The prosecutor described the situation as "volatile" and told the court that firearms were drawn. Eventually police were able to get entry to the house and get the knife.
The court heard that the defendant had drugs in a bag, consisting of 300 pregabalin tablets; 100 diazepam and also clonazepam.
A defence barrister outlined that after an "attempted suicide", the defendant had been taken to hospital and then discharged and had gone home on the day in question.
The lawyer said the defendant has now been on remand in prison for six months and while in jail he had engaged with a psychiatrist and a mental health team.
The barrister said the defendant has apologised for what happened.
District Judge Nigel Broderick described the matter as "a very concerning case". He told the defendant that the use of the knife was "particularly concerning and your stated intention that you wanted the police to shoot you in some form of attempted self-harm".
The judge said the defendant needs to stop taking drugs as they have a negative effect on his mental health "and no doubt that was the main driving factor in relation to these serious incidents".
The judge said the defendant had spent six months on remand in custody which was the equivalent of a one-year sentence and if he was given a jail term he would be released without support services in the community.
Judge Broderick said there is a risk of the defendant reoffending if his drug use and mental health issues are not addressed.
He added that “in an attempt to assist" the defendant in doing that, he would put him on Probation for a year with the conditions including attending any treatment programme and that he must engage with mental health services.