Back
Magistrates review the £3,000 fine for the owners of the ‘barking dog’

 

The Council reported the case on April 1st2019 when the owners of a dog in Grangetown were fined a total of £3,000 following four breaches of a noise abatement notice relating to their dog barking.

 

On one visit by an officer from the Shared Regulatory Service 1,350 barks were witnessed in a 45 minute period - which is one bark every two seconds.

 

Previously when the sentence was given, Ms Linda Hill and Mr Jason Badham from Amherst Street in Grangetown didn't attend court and the case was proved in their absence. They were both fined £1,320, ordered to pay costs of £110 as well as a victim surcharge of £44 each.

 

Yesterday the case was listed again at Cardiff Magistrates' Court as both defendants applied to the court to have their conviction set aside, on the basis that they hadn't received the court summons as they had moved house. The case was then re-opened.

 

Ms Hill and Mr Badham attended court and pleaded guilty to four offences of failing to comply with a noise abatement notice relating to noise from their barking dog.

 

Following the defendants' mitigation which was given in court, the magistrates gave each of the defendants a conditional discharge for three months and they were ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £20 each.

 

A conditional discharge is when the offender is released and the offence is registered on their criminal record. No further action is taken unless they commit a further offence within a time decided by the court. In this instance the time limit was set for three months.

 

The Magistrates concluded the hearing by saying, "The sentence reflects the opinion of the Bench today."