The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Stone thrown at horse in path confrontation
Man found guilty of reckless endangerment
A retired university academic hurled a stone at a horse and swore at two female riders after “ambushing them” about equestrian use of a footpath near a Perthshire village, Stirling Sheriff Court heard.
Soil chemist Dr David Farley struck Laura Campbell’s mount on the flank with the rock after shouting and swearing at her for making the path, between the hamlet of Ashfield, and Dunblane, muddy with her horse’s hooves, the court heard.
Miss Campbell’s horse bucked and nearly unseated her because of Farley’s actions, it was said.
The court heard that Miss Campbell, 24, and a friend, Danielle Lavery, also 24, had been exercising their horses on the path, which goes through a sheep field, on a “beautiful” February day, when they came across Farley, 61, who worked for Stirling University before he retired, walking his golden retriever.
Miss Campbell said Farley stood in front of them with his arms out and began swearing.
She said: “Danielle’s horse had to jump to one side as he wouldn’t move. His stance was very aggressive. He lunged at Danielle and he was standing with his arms out in a star shape so I couldn’t get past.”
Miss Campbell said Farley’s
I heard something contact the back of my horse and it bucked up and completely unseated me. LAURA CAMPBELL
aggression made her horse “very unsettled” so she nudged it to get it to go past over a stony piece of ground, though she knew the animal might hurt itself.
She said: “Then he threw a rock and it hit my horse. My horse was jumping on the spot.
“I heard something contact the back of my horse and it bucked up and completely unseated me.”
Miss Campbell said she lost a stirrup but managed to avoid falling off, and rode up the field to where Miss Lavery now was.
Miss Lavery said Farley came towards them shouting and swearing and saying they were not allowed on the path.
She said: “He said we’d tear up the track and make it muddy.”
Farley denied “ambushing” and “attempting to corral” the women.
He said he had approached them with “a wave” and wanted to talk to them because people had been complaining about horses making the path muddy.
He said he had “wanted to have a conversation with them” about the state of the path, had never sworn, and never raised his voice “more than 20% above normal conversation”.
He said the only thing he had thrown was “the head of a teddy bear” for his dog, and not at the horse anyway.
He claimed it had been Miss Campbell who swore at him.
Sheriff Wyllie Robertson said he accepted the riders’ evidence and rejected Farley’s. He found Farley, of Clachan, Ashfield, guilty of reckless endangerment by throwing the stone at Miss Campbell’s horse, causing it to bolt, and using threatening behaviour. The incident occurred on February 5. He fined Farley £750.