AN ENNISKILLEN man who grabbed a woman by the hair who had tried to break up an incident after a snowball fight has been given community service.
David Coulter (44) of Drumawill Park Enniskillen appeared at Enniskillen Magistrates Court on Monday for sentencing on common assault and disorderly behaviour, having previously pleaded guilty to the charges.
On the evening of March 10th this year Coulter was drinking in a local bar with the woman. They had been in each other’s company for a number of hours and ended up in the Cornerstore Bar.
At around 11.30pm, the defendant and another man had a snowball fight which ended with Coulter, who was drunk at the time grabbing the man. When the woman tried to break the situation up Coulter grabbed her and pulled her hair.
Police were called by staff at the bar on the night. The woman did not contact police to report what had happened until a number of days later.
While she did not have any injuries and did not require any treatment, she showed police a photo of how some of her hair had come out when she brushed it afterwards.
In his police interview Coulter said he remembered being in the Devenish Bar with the woman but after that he had “gone blank” and couldn’t remember what happened.
Defence solicitor Michael Fahy said Coulter, who had no previous criminal record, had “unequivocally” accepted his guilt from the beginning and expressed deep regret and remorse.
Mr Fahy added the defendant had been dealing with a number of issues, and said it was clear the cause of the incident had been that he had mixed alcohol with his medication. He said on the night in question, when Coulter had left to go from one bar to the other, the fresh air had resulted in him losing his memory.
District Judge Micheal Ranaghan said the incident had been “a sustained and vicious assault on a young woman.” He sentenced him to two years probation and 90 hours community service. Judge Ranaghan also ordered Coulter to pay the woman £200.
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