Prosecutors have dropped their case against a defendant accused of using threatening behaviour in Chester city centre.
Nicholas Crawshaw, 24, of Bailey Bridge Close, Chester, had pleaded not guilty at Chester Magistrates’ Court to using threatening words, abuse or behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress.
He was due to go on trial before magistrates on Monday, October 23, but the case was discontinued due to insufficient evidence.
CPS spokeswoman Elizabeth Ugborn said CCTV footage revealed that in the eyes of the law there was no victim during the early hours incident outside Go Fresco takeaway, Northgate Street.
'Commotion'
At a hearing in August, prosecutor Michael Youds had explained how a police officer witnessed ‘a commotion’.
Crawshaw was alleged to have ‘squared up’ to a group of males but in turn claimed he only responded after they approached him and were abusive.
Mr Youds said: “He (the officer) sees Mr Crawshaw squaring up to a group of males, gesticulating towards them. He describes Mr Crawshaw as looking aggressive, swearing, clenching his fists.”
The prosecutor added: “The officer says he tried to reason with Mr Crawshaw and the other males - tried to calm the situation down but that failed.
"He says on several occasions Mr Crawshaw squared nose-to-nose with one of the other males and he had to force them apart. He described Mr Crawshaw as swearing towards the other male.
"The police officer was going to issue Mr Crawshaw with a dispersal notice but he says he didn’t cooperate and so was subsequently arrested for the Public Order Act offence.”
Asked to confirm by the court clerk who the victims were in the case, Mr Youds alleged it was members of the public who were present that were subject to harassment, alarm or distress.
No evidential grounds
But the CPS spokeswoman said this week: “The CCTV doesn’t appear to show anyone displaying alarm or distress. That’s the background and it was dropped on evidential grounds.”
She clarified that in law ‘a police officer cannot be harassed, alarmed or distressed’.
Crawshaw’s solicitor Howard Jones told the August hearing that three males had approached his client and were ‘abusive towards him’.
He argued the police did not take that into account but solely focused on Mr Crawshaw’s reaction.
