A drunken thug threatened to kill his workmate with a Stanley knife, before driving his car into a field.
Christopher Purvis flew into a rage during a fraught night-out with colleagues at the Airlie Street Bar in Alyth.
The 25-year-old sank seven pints of lager before getting turfed out of the pub for challenging his pals to a fight.
In the street, Purvis pulled a knife out of his pocket and threatened to cut one of his workmate’s throats.
He then got into his Volkswagen Scirocco and threw several tools onto the street.
Purvis drove off but only made it to the edge of town before careering off the road.
He abandoned his car in a field, sparking a police search.
A ‘cavalier’ attitude to driving
The apprentice stonemason, of Linefield Road, Carnoustie, appeared at Perth Sheriff Court and admitted driving in Alyth on August 17, 2020, while nearly three times the legal limit.
He further admitted acting in a threatening or abusive behaviour and having a bladed weapon in a public place.
Sheriff Gillian Wade told him: “It is clear that your offending is escalating.
“You have a very cavalier attitude to driving and driving is a privilege, not a right.
“It is a right you will not have for some considerable time.”
Purvis was disqualified for 27 months and ordered to carry out 270 hours of unpaid work.
He was placed on a Restriction of Liberty curfew order for five months.
Thrown out of the pub
Fiscal depute Bill Kermode said that Purvis arrived at the pub with friends and workmates at about 5.40pm.
“They had been driven there by the accused,” he said.
“Between the time they arrived and 11pm, the accused drank around seven pints of lager.”
The court heard he spent the night chatting with a woman at the bar.
He became aggressive when his friends said they did not want him to take her back to one of their houses.
He began asking them to fight and was asked to leave the pub.
Enraged with a Stanley knife
“Once out in the street, the accused continued arguing with his colleague,” said Mr Kermode.
“He produced a Stanley knife from his pocket.
“He threatened that he would slash him, cut his throat and kill him.
“The pub manager saw the accused with the knife down by his side.
“He ushered the colleague back inside.
“The accused was enraged and walked away from the pub.”
The court heard a bus driver went past Purvis as he was trying to get into his car.
“He noticed that the accused appeared to be under the influence,” said Mr Kermode.
“The bus driver continued on his route, and turned into Airlie Street a few minutes later.
“But he had to stop because the accused’s vehicle was now in the middle of the road.”
Purvis drove off towards Blairgowrie, while the bus driver stopped briefly to speak to the pub manager.
Car crash
By the time the bus reached the A926 junction on the edge of town, Purvis’s car had gone off the road and was in a field.
“The bus driver stopped to make sure no one was hurt,” said Mr Kermode.
“But he found the car to be empty and secured.”
The court heard a dog walker reported seeing light from a mobile phone in another field, heading towards Meigle.
Police were called to the scene and began a search for Purvis.
“At 1.30am, he presented himself to the police at the crashed vehicle,” said Mr Kermode.
He was breathalysed at the roadside and the reading came back at 65 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 ml of breath.
‘Outrageous’ drinking
Purvis’s solicitor said his client has ADHD and at the time was on antidepressant medication.
“The amount of alcohol he consumed that night was outrageous given the medication he was on,” he said.
Purvis had been using the Stanley knife for work and forgot it was in his pocket, he added.
