A serving police officer charged with assault and drink driving following an alleged drunken fight at an upmarket hotel can be identified by the media, a judge has ruled.
District Judge Nigel Broderick told Ballymena Magistrates Court that despite “eloquent” defence submissions and oral evidence from a senior police officer, he was not satisfied “that the evidence meets the high test” to depart from the principle of open justice, thereby allowing the media to name Constable Marcus Brush.
Refusing the defence application for Brush (30) to be anonymised, the judge handed down a written ruling where he outlined that despite the “major data breach by the PSNI involving thousands of police officers” names and details being released in error, “there is no evidence that he is the subject of any threat”.
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Brush, whose address is given as c/o PSNI Brooklyn, Knock Road in Belfast, faces four charges of common assault of two men and two women, using disorderly behaviour on licensed premises, namely the Galgorm Hotel and driving with excess alcohol on the Fenaghy Road in Cullybackey on September 22.
It is understood the charges arise following an incident at a wedding which the constable, who was off duty at the time and who has been suspended pending the outcome of the court case and a PSNI professional standards investigation, was attending.
Accordingly, DJ Broderick adjourned the case to November 16.