A former Weston-super-Mare resident has been ordered to pay over £4,000 in fines and costs for failing to clear up after his dog.

Carl Davies, formerly of Royal Sands but who now lives in London, had pleaded not guilty to three offences of failing to pick up after his dog on 5, 6 and 8 March last year, on the Beach Lawns in Weston in breach of North Somerset Council’s Public Space Protection Order.

After legal argument about the admissibility of video evidence and a two-day trial at North Somerset Magistrates Court, District Judge David Taylor found Davies guilty of all three offences. He was fined £100 for each offence. He was also ordered to pay a £30 victim surcharge and £3,873 in costs to North Somerset Council – a total of £4,203.

The successful prosecution was brought by the council after a local resident saw Davies walking his dog on a number of occasions, failing to pick up after it, and began to film him. The resident handed his footage to the council who originally tried to deal with the matter by way of fixed penalty notices. Mr Davies declined to pay the penalty notices and so the council brought the case to court.