A delinquent soldier appeared in Magistrates' Court yesterday after dodging his Regiment duties for a month.

O'dean Lamant Phillips, 21, of Radnor Estate, Hamilton Parish, failed to show up to three Regiment sessions between May 10 and May 31, the court heard.

He also skipped out early from a weekend camp on June 4 and failed to get permission for missing the sessions from his Commanding Officer.

Phillips' lawyer Charles Richardson told Senior Magistrate Archibald Warner that his client has been a member of the Bermuda Regiment since January, 2004 and that he had already served three days for his absence.

Mr. Richardson said his client had been having some issues at the time he missed camp.

"This is clearly not a case of someone who was flagrantly disregarding his duty," he said.

Mr. Richardson argued that his client did not deserve custodial time and that putting people in jail for minor offences may be the reason Bermuda has the second highest per capita prison rate in the world.

"Let's not go there," Mr. Warner said, with a smile, sparking laughter in the court. He handed Phillips a $400 fine for skipping out on his duties but said he could not compel a man to attend the Regiment, all he could do was reprimand him for failing to do so.