An Alexandra man who picked up a can of police pepper spray and threw it out of two officers' reach as they were being attacked on Friday night put the officers at risk, Judge Stephen O'Driscoll said yesterday.
Kyle McLeod (21), fabricator, appeared in the Alexandra District Court and admitted charges of stealing a can of pepper spray valued at $20 from police and obstructing Senior Constable Michael Colligan, in Alexandra on October 15. He was sentenced to 100 hours' community work.
Prosecutor Sergeant Ian Collin said McLeod was intoxicated when he saw his friend struggling with the officers outside a hotel. A pepper spray was on the ground and he picked it up and threw it some distance away.
The explanation he gave was that he did not want the spray to be used on his friend.
Counsel Nicole Murphy said McLeod's actions were performed out of a "misguided sense of loyalty" to his friend.
He was embarrassed and remorseful when he later found out the details of the incident.
Depriving the police of the pepper spray made their job more difficult and risky, Judge O'Driscoll said.
McLeod had 12 previous convictions in 2008 and 2009 and but had kept out of trouble since August 2009 until this incident, Judge O'Driscoll said.
