Poor judgment from accused

District court accused parks in Lord Justice Clerk's space


You can't help but feel a wee bit sorry for John Bernard, who mistakenly parked in the wrong space - which just happened to belong to Scotland's second most senior judge.

The unlucky man, due to appear in Edinburgh District Court on an assault charge, mistook the private car park of the adjacent Parliament House, as one for the district court.

The attendant was away from his bothy so Mr Bernard reversed his white van into an unmarked bay, failing to realise it was reserved for Lord Gill's MG sports car.

When his Lordship arrived he parked nose-to-nose with the van, leaving court officials and police to search for the owner.

Half an hour later the red-faced Bernard arrived from court to wait in his van for Lord Gill to reverse his car out of the way.

Bernard was eventually fined £50 in the district court after admitting punching a man - but escaped without charge for the parking.

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