A CARLISLE man who had previously denied the illegal possession of a knife in public could now face jail after changing his plea to guilty.
Nathan Young, 31, had admitted supplying a quantity of cannabis in the city, and possessing the same class B drug with intent to supply. These crimes occurred during September and October last year.
Young initially pleaded not guilty to unlawfully having a bladed article – a Stanley knife – in public at Margaret Creighton Gardens in the city on October 22. He was due to stand trial this week.
But when he appeared again at Carlisle Crown Court, in front of Judge Nicholas Barker, Young admitted the knife crime.
The case was adjourned after his lawyer, David Wales, asked for the preparation of a pre-sentence report and a specialist medical document. “Mr Young suffers from paranoid schizophrenia, together with some other mental health problems,” Mr Wales explained.
Young, of Ferguson Street, is due to be sentenced at the crown court on October 29 and was remanded in custody in the meantime. It emerged that he has a previous weapon offence on his record, meaning he will receive a six-month minimum prison term unless a judge concludes such a punishment would be unjust.
“The court will consider all options as far as sentencing is concerned,” Judge Barker told Young ahead of next month’s hearing.
