A 16-year-old boy is believed to be the first person in the city to have been arrested under new legislation brought in to tackle assaults on emergency workers.
Officers were patrolling Plymouth city centre when they began to receive a number of reports of youths causing trouble near the McDonalds in New George Street.
At around 8pm on Saturday officers spotted a group of around five youths and approached them with the aim of speaking to them about issues raised by other members of the public.
However, it is understood a number of the youths turned hostile and abusive to the officers, with one spitting on the face and uniform of an officer.
Police have confirmed two teens, aged 15 and 16, were arrested on suspicion of causing public disorder, while the 16-year-old was also arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker under the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018.
Sgt Greg Bridgett, central sector neighbourhood team leader, later Tweeted: "More reports last night of disorder among groups of youths in city centre. Result: 2 in custody for public order offences as well as spitting at one of the team. We will not tolerate these actions especially when decent law abiding people are going about their business."
The 15-year-old was later released under investigation although the 16-year-old was said to still be at Charles Cross police station custody suite as of Sunday afternoon.
The new law protecting emergency workers from assault received Royal Assent on September 13 this year and followed growing concern about the increasing number of violent assaults on paramedics, police, prison officers, custody officers, firefighters and search and rescue services personel.
The new law saw the maximum sentence for assault against them double from 6 to 12 months in prison and courts must now also consider the strongest penalties for other offences against emergency workers.
Recent years have seen an increase in assaults on emergency workers, with 26,000 assaults on police officers in the past year and over 17,000 on NHS staff. Assaults on prison officers rose by 70 percent in the three years to 2017, with an 18 percent increase experienced by firefighters in the past two years too.
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