Judge warns father that he could be jailed if he breaches order (From Swindon Advertiser)

Judge warns Swindon father that he could be jailed if he breaches order

12:00pm Thursday 10th January 2013 in News

A JUDGE has told a father-of-two he may have to explain to his daughters that he is going to prison after he failed to turn up to carry out his community service.

Stewart Hayes, of Dean Street, Rodbourne, was given the unpaid work order after he was caught with £1,200 worth of cannabis and a newly purchased set of scales and zip lock bags.

But after the 30-year-old only turned up for one of four days of unpaid work, he was back before Swindon Crown Court for breaching the community sentence.

Judge Euan Ambrose warned him that if he did not co-operate with the probation service, he could turn the order into a jail term.

He said: “If I say to you if you carry on like this, you go to prison and you have to go to tell your daughters that you are going to prison: I don’t imagine you would like to have that conversation.

“This is an order of the court and it must be complied with. There’s not any choice in the matter.

“It has to be complied with and you have made a bad start on the order.

“Trying to explain to a nine-year-old that you are going to prison is not anything that any of us would like to have to do, so get on with the order and make sure I don’t see you again.”

Hayes, who was appearing before the judge on his younger daughter’s ninth birthday, also has an 11-year-old girl.

forklift truck driver said he had missed the appointments as his life had been ‘a bit hectic’ because of work and family commitments.

Because he worked every other Saturday he found it hard to fit in the community service but he had now arranged things with probation so there would not be a problem.

The judge said he would allow the community order to continue but added another 21 hours of unpaid work and told him to pay £40 costs.