A Teesside man has been jailed for flicking a lit cigarette into the face of a police officer.
Lee Stott, 37, of Hartington Road, Stockton-on-Tees, admitted one charge of assault on an emergency worker when he appeared at Teesside Magistrates' Court on Thursday, 30th April 2020.
District Judge Helen Cousins heard that officers responded to a disturbance on Hartington Road at around 9 pm on Tuesday evening.
Private security staff working on the street were concerned that people were flouting current coronavirus restrictions by going into each other's properties.
Emma Cruickshank, prosecuting, said the police officer had approached Stott and asked him to return to his property on the same street.
Stott replied: "Summons me then I'm not bothered."
He added "I don't give a fuck. I'll walk around all night me", before lighting up a cigarette and flicking it at the officer's forehead.
The officer reported a "burning sensation" on her head, but sustained no major injuries.
Brett Wildridge, mitigating, said that officers at the scene described Stott as "under the influence of substance" and "unsteady on his feet and slurring".
Mr Wildridge added: "He accepts that he flicked the cigarette and it struck the officer but it was a wreckless act.
"He apologises through me for that."
He also added that his client had misused temazepam to excess.
Judge Cousins, sentencing, noted that Stott should not have been out of his property and described his actions as "unacceptable, particularly in the current climate."
Stott was sentenced to 26 weeks' custody.
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