INVERNESS DELIVERY DRIVER IN COURT FOR STAMPEDING SEAGULL TO DEATH
An Inverness delivery driver named Alistair Davidson was brought to court after he was involved in an incident where he stamped a young herring gull to death.The court heard that Davidson claimed he did this to "put it out of its misery".
The case was heard at Wick Sheriff Court, and Davidson, 67, admitted he had injured the bird intentionally or recklessly by throwing a stick at it and subsequently stamping on its head, which resulted in the bird's death.
The incident occurred outside a shop in Meadow Lane, Thurso, on August 17 of the previous year.
The court was told that the stick Davidson used was normally employed to pull delivery trolleys into the store and also to scare gulls away.
When a gull was nearby, Davidson picked up the stick and threw it towards the bird, but it struck the gull, and he then went over and stamped on its head.
Davidson explained to police that he thought it was an accident and that he threw the stick to scare the gull, but it went the wrong way, and he then decided to "stand on it to put it out of its misery".
The court was told that Davidson had thrown the stick in the gull’s direction, which caused injury when it changed direction unexpectedly.
His solicitor also suggested that seagulls can be nuisances and described his action as "completely inappropriate".
The sheriff noted that Davidson was a first-time offender but emphasized that such behavior was unacceptable and recommended he should have contacted a vet or the RSPB for humane treatment.
Davidson is scheduled to be sentenced on February 23 and will need to appear personally in court.
The incident has been tagged under "Seagulls" and "Wick Sheriff Court" for related topics.
