Disorderly behaviour at hotel ‘damaged island’s tourism reputation’

Thursday 15 August 2019

A man who admitted being ‘drunk and disorderly’ around the Premier Inn has been blasted for compromising Jersey’s reputation as a tourist destination in the Magistrate's Court.

Christopher Henry Hall (45) appeared in Court this week, having admitted being “abusive", and swearing at people while he was drunk around the Premier Inn hotel earlier this month.

The Court heard that the Police were aware of Hall “causing trouble in various locations throughout the town” on 10 August this year. 

Pictured: Hall was arrested and charged with being 'drunk and disorderly'.

The Advocate on duty, James Bell, appeared on the 45-year-old’s behalf and indicated Hall's guilty plea to the single charge of being drunk and disorderly.

Advocate Bell invited the Assistant Magistrate to impose a ‘binding over order’ - an agreement between the defendant and the Court that he won’t re-offend within a certain time frame to avoid a more severe punishment for the incident in question. 

Although the Duty Advocate acknowledged that Hall is “no stranger to the Court”, he said that the defendant wanted “to take certain steps as soon as possible” to make changes in his life.

Speaking on his own behalf, Hall said that when he gets released from prison he has “nowhere to go” and he “become[s] homeless.”

Pictured: The case was heard in the Magistrate's Court.

“I just say stupid things to people sometimes… I don’t mean anything by it… I’m not proud of any of this,” Hall explained.

However, the Probation Officer who was present in Court said that Hall was “due to present himself to the Shelter” – a charity which provides accommodation and support for those who find themselves homeless or at risk of homelessness – but he “didn’t attend.”

Advocate Bell observed that Hall was in “a reflective mood”, to which the presiding Assistant Magistrate, Peter Harris, replied: “Mr Hall is often reflective when he’s in Court.”

Ahead of handing down his sentence, the Assistant Magistrate warned Hall: “Jersey doesn’t market itself as a place for a holiday [for visitors] to have drunk men swearing at them in public.”

Having been told there was "no excuse" for his behaviour, Hall accepted this, saying: “I’m a nice guy when I don’t drink, so moral of the story is, 'Don’t drink.'”

The Assistant Magistrate decided to impose a three-month binding over order and advised Hall to go to the Shelter for assistance.