Youth tasered by police appears in court in Derry

An 18 year old Derryman has been freed on bail after admitting possessing dangerous weapons in the city in the early hours of yesterday morning.
Derry Magistrates Court was told the how police used a Taser gun on Noel Cairns, of Glassagh Park, after Cairns was seen standing in the middle of the road holding three knives and swinging his arms in an aggressive manner.
The court was told Cairns was also trying to stop vehicles, and at one stage he cut himself on the chest with one of the knives
The court heard that police were deployed to the junction of Lonemore Road and Westland Street at around 5 o’clock yesterday morning due to the risk to the public and to Cairns himself.
The teenager was asked to stand still, but he started walking towards police still carrying the knives and the Taser was discharged by a police officer. That is now the subject of a Police Ombudsman’s investigation.
Defence Solicitor Keith Kyle told the court it was an unusual case. During a police interview, Cairns said the knives had come from his own house and that he had no intention of hurting anyone else but himself.
District judge Barney McElholm said he would need a pre-sentence report to see what was going on in the case. He released Cairns on his own bail of £500 on condition he does not take alcohol and observes a curfew from 8pm to 8am.
Cairns is due back in court on the 9th of September.