Man who threw dog poo over neighbour's gate said 'injured wrist affected aim'

A man who was cleaning up ready for a birthday barbecue threw dog excrement over the wall and against his neighbour's gate. Blackburn Magistrates' Court heard how John Howard claimed he had not meant to foul the gate, but District Judge Alexandra Preston said he could be seen loading the dog poo onto a shovel and launching it over the fence. She said: "I can't understand why you would do that when you could have put it in a bag and disposed of it properly.

"Whether it was intentional or not, you behaved in a very anti-social way." Julia Draper, prosecuting, said the neighbour had gone into her backyard and smelt the stench of dog poo. She checked her CCTV which showed the defendant loading a shovel and throwing it at her gate on August 13.

"She says there has been tension between them but she is not sure why," Miss Draper added. Howard, who was not represented said it was his birthday and he had been tidying his garden ready for a party. He claimed he had not intended to throw the excrement at the gate but had a wrist injury which impaired his aim.

Howard, 53, of Market Street, Ramsbottom, pleaded guilty to criminal damage to a door. He was ordered to pay £150 compensation and £85 costs..