A TEENAGER has appeared in court after breaching a curfew order.

Calvin Derek Phillip Upjohn faced the bench at South Cumbria Magistrates’ Court after he was absent for almost 130 hours of a curfew.

The defendant, 19, admitted breaching the curfew, which was previously handed down after he fell foul of a restraining order in Barrow.

Magistrates were told the defendant failed to provide the court with a reasonable excuse for breaching the order.

He was also said to have failed to make himself available when staff from the Electronic Monitoring Service visited his previous home on three occasions.

The defendant also applied to the court to change the address at which he is subject to the curfew.

Brian Carruthers, of the county’s probation service, confirmed the curfew, lasting between 9pm and 7am, was imposed on February 24 and was set to last until August 19.

The EMS staff, who administer and install the curfew equipment, attempted to visit Upjohn’s address on April 10, 13 and 14.

Mr Carruthers said he had no objections to the curfew address being moved to the defendant’s current home at Ashton Road in Blackpool and recommended stretching the curfew period for an extra two weeks.

Karen Templeton, representing the defendant, said: “It was a six-month order that was a pretty severe punishment and for a very large part of that he has complied.

“He had been struggling with his mental health and had a breakdown.

“He felt he needed to be somewhere with his family.”

She said Upjohn had told his solicitor that he had not been able to be at his address but did not tell the relevant authorities directly.

She also said Upjohn had followed his girlfriend in moving away from Barrow.

Miss Templeton added: “It’s a fresh start. He will stay at his sister’s for the rest of the curfew.”

Magistrates, led by chairman of the bench Gary Ormondroyd, extended Upjohn’s curfew for an extra 10 days.

He will have to stay at home between 9pm and 7am until August 29.

Upjohn was given the curfew after he made indirect contact with a woman, which he was prohibited from doing so by a restraining order January 20.

He was at the time living at Marsden Street in Barrow.