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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Neighbour cleared of dog killing | Neighbour cleared of dog killing |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| A court has dismissed a case against a company director accused of killing his neighbour's dog by hitting it with a hoe after a long-running row. | A court has dismissed a case against a company director accused of killing his neighbour's dog by hitting it with a hoe after a long-running row. |
| Magistrates in West Sussex said Neville Hill, 48, was defending his property when he struck the five-year-old border terrier Wurzel with the garden tool. | Magistrates in West Sussex said Neville Hill, 48, was defending his property when he struck the five-year-old border terrier Wurzel with the garden tool. |
| The dog's owner Tricia Wales funded a private prosecution after the RSPCA said it would not pursue legal action. | The dog's owner Tricia Wales funded a private prosecution after the RSPCA said it would not pursue legal action. |
| Mr Hill said common sense had prevailed but Miss Wales was "disappointed". | Mr Hill said common sense had prevailed but Miss Wales was "disappointed". |
| No pain | No pain |
| Chichester magistrates had been told that the blow fractured Wurzel's skull, causing it to haemorrhage, and the bitch had to be put down after the incident on 21 September last year. | Chichester magistrates had been told that the blow fractured Wurzel's skull, causing it to haemorrhage, and the bitch had to be put down after the incident on 21 September last year. |
| Mr Hill admitted hitting the dog with a garden hoe but denied criminal damage. | Mr Hill admitted hitting the dog with a garden hoe but denied criminal damage. |
| He said he did not mean to harm the dog, but was only trying to stop her from attacking his own elderly dalmatian, Jasper. | He said he did not mean to harm the dog, but was only trying to stop her from attacking his own elderly dalmatian, Jasper. |
| Wurzel had to be put down after she was hit with the hoe | Wurzel had to be put down after she was hit with the hoe |
| The RSPCA said it would not prosecute because Wurzel was rendered unconscious immediately and did not feel any pain. | The RSPCA said it would not prosecute because Wurzel was rendered unconscious immediately and did not feel any pain. |
| During the one-and-a-half day trial, Chichester Magistrates' Court heard that Mr Hill and Miss Wales lived next door to one another in a row of terraced cottages in the village of Yapton, near Arundel. | During the one-and-a-half day trial, Chichester Magistrates' Court heard that Mr Hill and Miss Wales lived next door to one another in a row of terraced cottages in the village of Yapton, near Arundel. |
| They got on well when Mr Hill moved in about four years before the incident, but they fell out over his claims that her three terriers kept getting into his garden, fouling on his lawn and scaring his chickens. | They got on well when Mr Hill moved in about four years before the incident, but they fell out over his claims that her three terriers kept getting into his garden, fouling on his lawn and scaring his chickens. |
| The court heard it was the responsibility of Miss Wales to maintain the hedge that separated their gardens. | The court heard it was the responsibility of Miss Wales to maintain the hedge that separated their gardens. |
| Mr Hill told magistrates the situation had become so bad that he had put his house on the market and moved to Copse Lane, Walberton. | Mr Hill told magistrates the situation had become so bad that he had put his house on the market and moved to Copse Lane, Walberton. |
| Magistrates decided that, as there were no witnesses to the incident, they could not prove that Mr Hill meant to harm Wurzel or was acting recklessly. | Magistrates decided that, as there were no witnesses to the incident, they could not prove that Mr Hill meant to harm Wurzel or was acting recklessly. |
| They added it was his right to defend his own dog and chickens on his own land. | They added it was his right to defend his own dog and chickens on his own land. |
| Magistrates said Neville Hill was defending his property when he struck a fatal blow to border terrier Wurzel at Yapton in West Sussex | Magistrates said Neville Hill was defending his property when he struck a fatal blow to border terrier Wurzel at Yapton in West Sussex |