Magistrates' Court yesterday for allegedly wounding someone with a bottle.

Burnell Howard Cross pleaded not guilty to causing actual bodily harm to Arthur Stanford Smith with a malt bottle last September when he appeared in plea court yesterday.

The case, in which the defendant is representing himself, was set down for trial on March 28 of next year.

Cross, 56, had appeared in court minutes earlier to stand trial for unrelated charges of threatening and verbally abusing a tourist.

But the matter was moved forward at the request of Crown counsel Leighton Rochester.

The defendant was arrested last July after 54-year-old Frank Farley alleged that he threatened him with a knife.

Mr. Farley, who was visiting the Island as a passenger on the cruise ship Zenith , claimed that Cross held a knife to his throat and racially abused him after he accidentally hit his taxi with a car door at Horseshoe Bay car park.

Senior Magistrate William Francis noted that the case was "of great public interest'' and said he felt it "should not be allowed to hang over his (Cross's) head for too long''.

He added that other public bodies interested in the matter included the Public Services Vehicle Licensing Board.

Cross, who is defending himself, also requested that he be allowed to review witness statements in preparation for the trial.

Advised by Mr. Francis that having a lawyer might help with this process, the defendant said that he could not afford one after being out of work for so long.

The case was set down for mention early next month.