Man on drugs convicted of attacking police officers

ABU DHABI // A man who attacked two policemen after he was caught driving under the influence of drugs has been handed a Dh20,000 fine and a six-month jail sentence by the Sharjah Criminal Court.

The Emirati banged his head against a police car when stopped, attacked the two Sharjah policemen inside the car and threatened them after they attempted to arrest him on May 1 last year, the Federal Supreme Court heard.

One was injured in the attack.

The court also confiscated his driver’s licence.

He appealed his verdict at the Sharjah Appeals Court, but it was upheld.

He also appealed to the supreme court, arguing that he was acting in self defence and that the lower courts should not have convicted him of attacking the policemen.

The court rejected his argument, saying Article 56 of the Penal Code states that self- defence is only valid when victims are forced to defend themselves in situations of immediate danger.

“Even if a person were to be left with no choice but to use force in self-defence, the response should be proportionate to the level of danger.”

The defendant also argued that the lower courts breached his right to defence when they dismissed his claim that he suffered psychological illness and lost control as a result.

But the court upheld the right of other courts to assess whether the defendant’s claim to psychiatric illness is true.

The court also maintained the right not to have to justify its conclusion.

Moreover, the court found that while psychological illness may serve as a motive for crime, it cannot justify rage.

The defendant had also argued that it was the policemen who provoked him, a justification the court also rejected.