Devon gardener Peter Churcher loses watering can assault appeal

A pensioner has lost his appeal against an assault conviction for soaking a woman with a watering can from his bathroom window. 

Peter Churcher, 65, claimed he was tendering to his hanging baskets in preparation for a Britain in Bloom contest when ‘all hell broke lose’ as water drenched his victim as she stood on the street below.

The bookshop owner was found guilty of assault by beating last year but appealed his conviction after being ordered to pay fines and costs totalling more than £1,000.

Peter Churcher, pictured, was convicted of assault after watering his plants at his home in Bere Alston, Devon  in July 2019. The water flowed from the plants down onto his victim Rosalina Foster

Churcher, pictured, appealed his conviction claiming the decision was wrong. However, his appeal was thrown out of court

The bookshop owner claimed he had been watering plants at his shop for 20 years

But he must now pay an extra £520 after a court threw out his appeal and described his claims as coming from ‘fantasy land’.

Speaking outside court, Churcher blasted his prosecution as ‘ludicrous’ and said he has spent 20 years looking after flowers the same way without incident.

But the court rejected his claims and deemed he soaked Rosalina Foster on purpose as she was blocking his front door by standing in the street.

The defendant argued he was watering his flowers at his window in the village of Bere Alston, Devon, in July 2019 which were part of an entry for the annual flower contest.

Ms Foster told the court she was drenched by cold water while standing in the street chatting to a friend who had been admiring the defendant’s orange and red begonias.

It was a hot day and the court heard the village was preparing for judging.

Ms Foster said she was left ‘shocked and angry’ by the attack.

Her friend Rosemary Niblock told the court: ‘All of a sudden this water came pouring out of an upstairs window and absolutely drowned her.

Ms Foster told the court she was drenched by cold water while standing in the street chatting to a friend who had been admiring the defendant’s orange and red begonias

‘I got wet on my right hand side. I was under the porch. It just came all at once.

‘Her hair was wet and her T-shirt was wet, right down to the waist.’

She said Churcher then shouted obscenities towards them and he later took pictures of them.

Recorder Jo Martin said that the bench was satisfied that Churcher had been upset by the women standing in the street and threw water at them to try to get them to go away.

The bench left in place the original penalty of a £153 fine, £775 costs, £200 compensation and a £32 victim surcharge.

Churcher was also ordered to pay an extra £520 for the costs of the appeal hearing.

He has described his prosecution as ‘ludicrous’ and maintained it should have never ended up in court.

He said: ‘I was just watering my own plants in the same way I have done for the last 20 years. I have done it thousands of times with no problems. But this time all hell broke loose.

‘I could not believe it.

‘I cannot find any other example of people getting into trouble like this just over a hanging basket.

‘Why would I go upstairs to drench a lady I don’t know with water? It makes no sense.

‘They just say I soaked them and then was rude. It’s just not true.’

Churcher, who runs a bookshop in the heart of the village, said the incident on July 12, 2019 has left a stain on his reputation and he said he struggles with the thought of now having a criminal record.

He added: ‘They claimed it was assault by beating and I have now got a conviction. God knows why. I have never been in trouble with the court and it is absolute lunacy. It is ridiculous.

‘I have now got a criminal record because I used a watering can to look after my hanging baskets. In reality that is as ridiculous as it sounds.

‘I have looked it up and there is no mention of anyone else being charged for an offence like this. There was a case with a hose but nothing like mine.

‘Assault by beating with a watering can is a different ball game. They say I threw the water at her – but all I was doing was watering the plants and aiming it at the pot.

‘I don’t know what it means for me now.

‘After it happened I heard a bit of noise from outside. No one said stop watering, but I came down and saw the two women outside.

‘They were not even really wet. They said I had thrown water on one of them and soaked them through to the bone. But how it ended up from that to me being in court I do not understand.

‘The water doesn’t even come that fast out of the spout.

‘The court convicted me on that basis. But how can I drench the lady with water from such a small spout? It is unfeasible.’