Bourne admits he was wrong to fight officers

A 32-year-old man who appeared in court today on several charges including assaulting two police officers, has been remanded to prison until next month.

Shawayne Adrian Bourne, of no fixed place of abode, is charged with assaulting Samuel Agard, occasioning him actual bodily harm, on May 7.

He had pleaded guilty to the offence but on hearing his claims of self defence after listening to the facts from the prosecutor, Chief Magistrate Ian Weekes changed the plea to not guilty.

Bourne said, “I get in a scuffle with the young gentleman but I didn’t stab ‘her’.”

He, however, pleaded guilty to assaulting and resisting police constable Juamane Daniel on May 9 as well as assaulting officer Ithaniel Chase the same day and damaging a pane of glass belonging to the state.

Prosecutor Sergeant Randolph Boyce disclosed that lawmen had reason to arrest Bourne on that day and he began to struggle violently. He was placed in the back seat of a police vehicle where he continued to fight, kicking and hitting officers about the body. He was eventually subdued and taken to the police station.

His actions continued at that location and at one point he fell off a chair and damaged the pane of glass.

Bourne told the No. 1 District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court this afternoon, “I was afraid. I just put up a guard. I wasn’t sure who was officer from not officer. I was wrong to fight back with the officers.”

Weekes remanded Bourne to Dodds pending sentencing on that charge and also ordered that an assessment be done while he is at the facility.