A TEENAGER grieving over the drugs related death of his 16-year-old sister turned to drink and drugs to help him cope with the emotional turmoil.

Blackburn magistrates heard Emile Nicol had assaulted a contractor at the Darwen bar named in honour of his dead sister and then assaulted his own girlfriend, blaming both offences on his mental state and the excessive use of alcohol and cannabis.

Nicol, 19, of Newton Street, Darwen, pleaded guilty to assaulting William Bell and Kerry Daley.

He was made subject to a drug rehabilitation order for nine months and ordered to do 40 hours unpaid work and pay £50 compensation to Mr Bell, £85 victim surcharge and £85 costs.

Philippa White, prosecuting, said Mr Bell had installed some audio equipment at the Sky bar in Darwen but got a call from the bar manager, Kerry Daley, to say there was a problem.

He attended at the bar and identified the fault but said he couldn't fix it that night.

"As he was talking to the manageress the defendant came from behind the bar and pushed him to the chest," said Mrs White. "He was also issuing threats saying Mr Bell was ripping off the owner who is his father."

Mr Bell went outside and the manageress followed to apologise for her boyfriend's behaviour but he came out and issued further threats.

Five days later Miss Daley was in bed when Nicol came into her room at 5am.

"She said he had started drinking and using drugs following a family bereavement and was clearly under the influence of something when he entered her room and accused her of cheating on him," said Mrs White. "Without warning she was grabbed by the neck. He ran off when a member of her family came to her assistance."

Damian Pickup, defending, said his client's sister, Sky Nicol, died in tragic circumstances after being given drugs on which she overdosed.

"He was very close to his sister and her death impacted on him emotionally," said Mr Pickup. "The bar where the first incident took place used to be called the Fun House but his father has bought it and named it Sky Bar in memory of his daughter."

Mr Pickup said Nicol's father had invested heavily in the bar and had spent £2,500 on the sound system.

"It wasn't working properly and my client was upset by the contractor's response," said Mr Pickup. "He believed his father had been ripped off and in the heat of the moment he grabbed hold of Mr Bell."

He said Nicol had been out drinking and smoking cannabis and someone told him his partner had been cheating on him

"In the heat of the moment he grabbed hold of her," said Mr Pickup. "She has since retracted her statement and has come to court to support him."