Isaac Cavanagh, 31, who pleaded guilty by letter in the Maroochydore Magistrates Court to a charge of urinating in a public place, said he was “significantly embarrassed” by the incident which happened at the Alexandra Headland Hotel in the early hours of September 3.
Magistrate John Parker, who accepted the plea, commented that contrary to early media reports, Cavanagh had not urinated on to a poker machine but in a carpeted alcove inside the gaming lounge, The Courier-Mail reports.
The court was told that the police constable, who had been drinking in the bar with friends, had tried to access the toilets towards a restaurant but when the door was locked he had apparently become disorientated and ended up in an area behind the poker machines.
A patron who saw the incident complained.
Security staff spoke to Cavanagh and he was later charged after anonymous information was also given to the Sunshine Coast police communications centre.
The court heard the officer had appeared to be “very intoxicated” and muttering “going to toilet”.
A married father with a young son, the policeman later told police he was so drunk he had no memory of the incident, which happened about 1.30am and was captured on the hotel’s CCTV cameras. The court heard he had since apologised to the hotel’s owners in writing and in person and offered to pay for cleaning saying he was “embarrassed and remorseful”.
He said he knew the community expected higher standards of conduct.
While noting the incident was “quite a disgraceful thing to do” and worse than instances of urinating in public in the street, Mr Parker said he did not intend to treat Cavanagh as any different from a civilian under the circumstances.
He fined Cavanagh $125 and ordered that no conviction be recorded.
Senior officers from the region, with oversight from the Ethical Standards Command, have yet to determine whether the officer will face further repercussions.
He had been stood down pending yesterday’s court hearing.