A man from Devon, considered to be Britain’s rudest has been jailed for
breaking an anti-social behavior order by shouting drunken abuse at
strangers.
George Lancelot, who has 176 convictions for repeated outbursts, suffers
from a personality disorder which makes him swear and rant whenever he
is out in public and has been drinking.
He has spent more than eight of the last ten years in jail for breaking
an ASBO which bans him from swearing in public at least a dozen times.
His solicitor warned that he risks spending almost all of the rest of
his life in jail because his mental condition means he will never be
able to comply with the terms of his ASBO.
He had only been out of jail for a few hours when he was arrested again,
first for swearing during an argument over his release grant, then for
threatening members of the public in a seaside resort.
As he was led from the dock in Exeter Crown Court he shouted "I’d get
less for burglary. F*ck off."
Lancelot clocked up most of his convictions while he was living rough on
the streets of Plymouth but carried on his abusive behavior after
being found a home in Torquay.
He had been back there for just a few hours after being released from
jail when police were called to the Riviera Centre by worried members of
the public who said he was swearing and threatening to stab passers-by.
Lancelot, aged 61, of Torquay, admitted breaching an ASBO and was jailed
or 20 months by Judge Phillip Wassall.
He told him: "I have to treat you as someone whose behavior completely
disregards the ASBO. In 1999 you were diagnosed with a personality
disorder and I am told there is unlikely to be any psychiatric
disposition which to help you.
The only thing the court can do is treat you as somebody who habitually
breaks the order. On this occasion you were threatening to stab people,
swearing and being aggressive to the public within hours of being
released.
Until you realize that this cannot go on, you will face longer and
longer sentence. Unless you deal with this you could spend the rest of your life in prison.”
Scott Horner, for the prosecution, said the ASBO, which has been in
force for ten years, forbids him to use offensive or obscene words or
gestures such are likely to cause harassment alarm or distress.
He said Lancelot was released from his last eight month sentence in
November and within hours appeared before Plymouth Magistrates who
released him again.
Kevin Hopper, for the defense, said there is a danger of Lancelot
spending almost all of the rest of his life in jail for public order offenses which normally carry a maximum penalty of just a few months.
He said: "It is clear from the probation report that his mental health
led to this behavior and he has a history of such issues. He was
released from custody and within hours repeated the behavior.
The reality is that unless there is some intervention, either enforced
by the courts or through the mental health services, he will effectively
serve a life sentence for public order offenses.
He cannot comply with the ASBO because he is mentally ill and has a
personality disorder. If he goes into custody he will be released and
within hours he will be back here with the same outcome. He faces a life
term but I don’t know what to suggest.”
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