Kevin Attard, 39 of Kalkara, was this afternoon jailed for three years and six months after being found guilty of attempted grievously bodily harm of a police constable.
He was not found guilty of the attempted murder of the policeman.
The verdict was reached by a jury earlier this afternoon after a two-day trial. Sentence was handed down by Mr Justice Joseph Galea Debono.
Mr Attard had told the police that he never wanted to hurt the officer in the incident which took place in St Julian's Police Station in April 2003, but he was drunk at the time and had also been receiving treatment for depression.
Mr Attard had stabbed PC Jonathan Farrugia in the stomach after having earlier been refused entry into a nightclub.
He was also found guilty of having punched PC Andrew St John, being in possession of a knife without a licence, assaulting a policeman and damaging his uniform.