A university student who kicked a seagull to death in front of horrified onlookers has been admonished after making a donation to the Scottish SPCA.
Alistair Livingstone, from Culross, was told his actions were “evil” and was ordered to pay £500 to the charity when the case called in January.
Dunfermline Sheriff Court heard how Livingstone attacked the bird as it sat on the town’s High Street and then told the police, “It was only a seagull.”
The 20-year-old kicked the black-backed gull so hard its head was lolling to one side and then killed it by booting it a second time as it flailed around.
Livingstone, of Blairhall House, pled guilty to intentionally, or recklessly, killing the wild bird by repeatedly kicking it on August 2 last year.
Depute fiscal Suzannah Hutchison told Sheriff Craig McSherry the incident happened at about 2.40am when Livingstone was finishing a night out.
Miss Hutchison said, “The High Street was very busy.
“At 2.40am a member of the public saw the accused go and kick the seagull on the ground.
“It was flailing with its head at one side. The member of the public reported it to police.
“At this point other people had started to abuse the accused for what he had done. The police arrived and Livingstone was taken for questioning.
“When asked about the incident, he said, ‘It was only a seagull’.”CradledA member of the public cradled the bird until it died.
Miss Hutchison added, “CCTV showed the accused kick the bird into the air.
“He then kicked it again.
“When asked about this, he said he had attempted to kick the bird but did not think he would be able to do it.
“He said he then saw the pain it was in and kicked it again to ‘put it out of its misery.'”
Solicitor Marjorie Socha said Livingstone had been on a night out with friends and had been drinking.
However, she stressed he refused to use that as an excuse for what happened.Ashamed”He is deeply ashamed,” Miss Socha added. “He would never dream of doing such a thing again.
“He is at university doing an honours engineering course and by all accounts he is doing very well and this incident is grossly out of character.”
Sheriff McSherry said, “This was a particularly evil attack on what could be regarded as a defenceless bird.
“To kick it once is bad enough but to kick it twice is quite appalling.”
He ordered Livingstone to stay out of trouble for six months and told him to pay £500 to the Scottish SPCA’s wildlife rescue and rehabilitation centre at Middlebank, near Inverkeithing.
When the case called yesterday Sheriff Ian Dunbar told Livingstone, “Clearly I haven’t heard the circumstances of this particular matter, but the nature of the charge is obvious and it is serious.
“It is one that will obviously cause a great deal of public concern.”
He took into account the fact that Livingstone was a first offender and had stayed out of trouble since January before admonishing him.
However, Sheriff Dunbar added, “I don’t want that message to be got over in any other way than this is regarded seriously by the courts.”