A Fife sex offender has been jailed for “severely” injuring a police officer less than a fortnight after being released from prison for a similar attack.
James Haggerty was freed on March 21 this year but attacked police who arrived at his Buckhaven home to investigate a possible breach of sex offender regulations.
The April 3 conflict resulted in one officer being hospitalised with a dislocated shoulder.
Haggerty has been sent back to prison.
Dislocated shoulder
Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court was told police arrived at Haggerty’s home in Factory Road, Buckhaven to investigate a possible of breach of a strict Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO) which is in effect until the end of 2025.
Fiscal depute Douglas Thomson said Haggerty, 23, began acting abusively upon having his mobile phone taken by police.
He said: “You will need more of you to get me out of here,” “I don’t like you,” “I will fight you” and “I will kick f*** out of yous.”
Shouting, swearing and spitting, Haggerty was brought into a communal close area.
While struggling with the constables, he attempted to headbutt one.
Due to lashing out his legs and spitting, fast straps and a spit hood were applied to Haggerty.
The officer sustained a dislocated shoulder and required 18 days off work before returning to light duties.
The court heard the officer had sustained five previous injuries to that shoulder.
Haggerty was brought from prison to court to admit assaulting the officer to his severe injury and acting abusively.
Jailed again
Haggerty’s solicitor David McLaughlin said: “He has, for his age, an unenviable record.
“Custody has been something of a revolving door for him.
“On this occasion, he had not breached his order.
“He felt a sense of injustice.
“He’s shown an appropriate amount of contrition.”
Sheriff Robert More jailed Haggerty for nine months, backdated to the day after the incident when he was remanded.
Commenting on the officer’s injury, the sheriff said: “It must have been incredibly painful.”
The SOPO breach allegations are not being proceeded with by prosecutors
Unfinished sentence
Haggerty was serving an unexpired portion of his previous sentence when the assault happened.
As part of his SOPO, he had been told not to contact any like-minded criminals.
But police caught him rekindling his romance with a pervert he met in jail on a Fife bus.
Haggerty then tried to headbutt police officers who spotted the couple.
Sheriff James Williamson handed Haggerty a 12-month prison sentence for breaching his order and a further six months behind bars for attacking the trio of police officers.
In 2018, bare-chested Haggerty threatened police with a pole and hurled rocks at buses in Dunfermline.
He later asked how many hits the incident would receive on Facebook and YouTube.
A year earlier, he was chased down the street by Tesco security staff after pilfering more than £150 worth of DVDs.
Later, when taken to the police station, Haggerty threatened officers be saying he would “get the Travellers down to sort them out”.
