Prison term after order revoked

He was Blaine McDonald, Mark Street, Lurgan.

The defendant had been made the subject of a combination order involving probation and community service but had failed to comply with the order.

The probation service applied at last Friday’s court to have the order revoked and replaced with another sentence.

McDonald had failed to attend and had not done any of the hours of the community service order.

His barrister said that his client would say he had not been receiving correspondence from probation although his address had not changed and the court could take that ‘with a pinch of salt’.

He added that McDonald’s lifestyle had involved the abuse of illicit substances but he was now absent from cannabis. He also had a suspended sentence hanging over him from Antrim Crown Court.

District Judge, Mr Mervyn Bates, said McDonald had done nothing of the order after he had been given the ‘olive branch’ to put something back into the community.

Imposing the two months sentence he also ruled that McDonald should be referred, by letter, back to Antrim Crown Court in relation to his breach of a suspended sentence.

After an application by the defendant’s barrister McDonald was released on his own bail of £300 to appeal against the sentence.