Thomas Simpson, 41, a credit controller, has been ordered to pay £100 in compensation and complete 60 hours of unpaid work after slapping a policewoman's bottom while being ejected from his lodgings. The case is notable because District Judge James Hulse, who sentenced him at Stockport magistrates court, openly criticised the police response and said he "shared" Simpson's frustration at officers attending what he regarded as a civil dispute.

The incident arose after Simpson left a scorch mark on a kitchen worktop during a late-night drunken attempt to cook a meal. Although he offered his deposit as compensation, his live-in landlord instead demanded he leave and called the police. Officers, who the court heard had no power to remove him, escorted him from the property, and outside he slapped a female officer on the bottom in anger, leaving her feeling "violated". Simpson described the act as a "sarcastic pat" and denied it was misogynistic or sexually motivated, while the judge suggested officers had helped create a "calamitous mess".