The fire caused damage to the court's entrance
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A man torched a court building because he was angry about being found guilty by a sheriff, a court has heard.
Staff at Stirling Sheriff Court had to flee the premises after Craig Lamont used a can of petrol he bought at a garage to start the blaze.
Appearing at the High Court in Glasgow, the 28-year-old admitted a charge of wilful fire-raising in June.
Sentence on Lamont, of Low Town, Thornhill, was deferred for background reports.
On the day of the offence he left Stirling Sheriff Court in an agitated state after being found guilty of breach of the peace, police assault and resisting arrest.
Smoke build-up
Having bought the petrol he returned to the court, on Viewfield Place, at about 1720 BST, shouting: "How's this for rough justice?"
He poured the petrol over the fire exit door and set it alight.
He then walked round to the locked front door of the court, doused it with petrol and set it on fire.
The six women and one man working inside the building managed to escape through the fire door, but the fire brigade arrived to find 6ft high flames shooting up into the archway at the main door and a build-up of smoke inside.
Judge Lord Carloway heard that Lamont, who is a diagnosed schizophrenic, later spoke with police at length about his court case earlier that day and expressed his frustration at the outcome.
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