A judge swore and stormed out of court on Tuesday when she was found guilty of failing to prevent her pet dog from attacking a neighbour. Beatrice Bolton, of Rothbury, Northumberland, who sits at Newcastle Crown Court, strode out of the courtroom, calling the decision "a fucking travesty".
The 57-year-old judge was convicted of breaching the Dangerous Dogs Act at Carlisle Magistrates' Court, after her German Shepherd bit 20-year-old Frederick Becker. "I'll never set foot in a court again", she was heard shouting as she left, the Press Association reported. Bolton, who was asked by the court usher to stop chewing gum during the two day trial, is due to be sentenced later on Tuesday.
The victim's parents, David and Anne Malia, described her and her partner as "the neighbours from hell." The two families had been friends for years, but a dispute over the rights to their shared back gardens and the behaviour of Bolton's pet dog soured relations. In May, the dog lunged at the Malias' son Becker as he lay on the lawn, leaving him with a bruised and bleeding leg. CCTV cameras showed the dog barking, running at Becker, and biting him.