Mum-of-two fuming after being fined eye-watering £1,000 for walking Alsatian off lead
Jane said she didn't know dogs weren't allowed on the field and ignored letters from the council and a court order
A DOG owner has been fined £1,000 for walking her dog off its lead on a playing field after she ignored letters from the council.
Mum-of-two Jane Hurry was walking her Alsatian, Max, in Colchester, Essex when she was approached by a council warden and told her dog must be on a lead.
The 54-year-old care home activities co-coordinator was initially given a £100 fine for walking her dog on playing fields of Colchester Rugby Club on January 15, but as she had recently moved, she didn't get the letter in the post.
On Friday she found out she had been summoned to court two days before and was then landed with a £500 absence fee, along with £450 costs and a further £50 surcharge.
Jane said: "I had not noticed any signs at all warning of the rule. £1,000 is one heck of a lot of money."
About her missed court order she said: "I would have pleaded guilty, I guess there's nothing else I could have done, but I would have stood up and had my say.
"They should just ban dogs from the pitches entirely instead of this silly rule."
The council said Jane "failed to comply with a public spaces protection order".
The order bans dogs entirely from being on the pitches and to be must be kept on a lead if they are being walked on the outskirts.
Anyone breaching the order is breaking the law under the Antisocial Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act.
Offenders are initially issued with a £100 fine but if they don't pay it, they are sent two reminder letters over the following weeks. If the warnings are still ignored, the council then takes them to court.
A Colchester Council spokesman added: "At no point in this particular case did we receive any communication from the defendant."
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