Hoddesdon £8K orange peel appeal spat with Broxbourne council

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-33424607

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A legal battle over a piece of orange peel could end up costing taxpayers and a Hertfordshire council up to £8,000.

Luke Gutteridge took his fight to court after being fined £75 for accidentally dropping the peel in Hoddesdon.

He binned the piece immediately and apologised to the Broxbourne Borough Council-contracted officer. However, he was still issued with the fine.

The case was dismissed. The council said "lessons would be learnt".

Mr Gutteridge was given a fixed penalty notice on 3 September. It stated he "did drop, leave and walk away from orange peel".

No peel appeal

When the enforcement officer pointed it out, Mr Gutteridge said he immediately retrieved and binned the 10p-sized peeling, thanked the officer and apologised.

When the fine arrived, he said: "There was no appeal process, it was either pay or go to court."

His lawyer, Dr Michael Ramsden, said: "We pointed out as there was no intent... the appeal should succeed and that would be a saving to the public purse."

However, the case went to court and was dismissed by Stevenage magistrates last month.

The cost of the nine-month battle was about £4,000 to the council, who "in my understanding" contracted an external firm of solicitors, Dr Ramsden said.

Mr Gutteridge's defence ran to slightly more, although the council will not cover these costs. "These, sadly, will come out of the public purse," he said.

Tim Hutchins, Broxbourne council member for environmental protection, said: "Clearly we thought we had sufficient evidence to bring this case. The costs were not awarded against us and I think that's a fair indication the court believed the case had been properly brought."

The local ombudsman had also upheld the decision to take the case to court, he said.

"We made a decision, the court disagreed and we take that on the chin."

He was unable to confirm the costs incurred by the council pursuing this case.

The case would be reviewed again, he said, and the warden would be spoken to.