Man Fined After Reacting To Gang
Edwin Hutton was arrested after reacting to a gang of children throwing snowballs at his mother's house (Reuters)

A protective son has been found guilty of assault and fined £500 after trying to stop a group of schoolboys throwing snowballs at his elderly mother's home.

Edwin Hutton, 44, grabbed one of the boys when the gang squared up to him and one threatened to strike him with a bottle.

However Sheriff Fiona Tait stated that Hutton had been wrong to react to the gang's provocation and grab one of them by the scruff of the neck.

She said: "I am in no doubt you were faced with unacceptable behaviour and a degree of provocation but that is not a defence. You can't behave that way towards children, however bad their behaviour was."

Hutton, of Alyth in Perthshire, was charged with assault after grabbing the 13-year-old boy by his clothing and forcing him to the ground in Blairgowrie in February this year.

In his statement, Hutton told Perth Sheriff Court that he was visiting his 78-year-old mother when one of the gang threw a snowball at the window.

He then proceeded to track down the thrower of the snowball before confronting him.

Hutton, a crane operator, is being forced to move after the incident and has been fined £500.