A British court on Wednesday convicted a man of assault
and placed him under a two-week curfew for throwing a snowball at a
female police officer.
Dean Smith was shopping with his family before Christmas in the
town of Swadlincote, central England, when he chucked the snowball
at the officer.
The 31-year-old pleaded guilty to common assault at the court in
Derby, central England. He was handed a 14-day curfew and ordered
to pay 85 pounds (134 dollars, 102 euros) costs.
Before his conviction, Smith said he thought it had been a joke
when police turned up at his door several days after he threw the
snowball.
"I couldn't understand it. When they took me to the police
station I thought it was a joke at first," said Smith, cited in The
Daily Telegraph newspaper.
"How much has all this cost the taxpayer?"
Prosecutors however claimed that Smith had been acting
aggressively because of a grudge and pointed out he had previously
been convicted for obstructing a police officer.
Under the terms of his curfew, Smith reportedly has to wear an
electronic tag and stay at home between 7:00 pm (1900 GMT) and 7:00
am (0700 GMT) for the next two weeks.