Current Events > Woman could face court after refusing to return balls kicked into her garden.

(+) Yeah! (+)

A woman who has footballs land in her garden "constantly" has lost her patience and donated them to charity.

Anny Kilbourne has lived at her home in Exeter for 12 years with a garden backing on to the local playing fields. She had become used to finding amateur footballers intruding on her property to retrieve their lost balls after mistakingly kicking them over the fence.

Anny believed youth football team Exeter Panthers were the culprits and she approached team supervisor Chris Leisk for an apology. But she claims she did not receive one, so she decided to confiscate the balls and give them away

But things escalated further when the matter was reported to police as theft - and Anny says she has been ordered by officers to pay 26 to replace them.

She says she has been told by police she will be interviewed and the matter could end up in court if she does not cough up.

Anny said: I'm an old woman who has always had a deep-seated respect for the police and the job they do, but now I find myself being harassed by them, in a situation in which I believe they shouldn't even be involved.

For 12 years Ive lived in Bettys Mead and I've constantly had footballs kicked onto my property. They are often followed by trespassing to recover them. The former has caused damage, the latter more, to a total of over 1,000."

Anne claims the Exeter Panthers ball struck her in the face and players didn't apologise

She recounted how she was in April hit in the face by a ball, the second in the same match. Anny says she refused to hand the footballs back, as she could see the club had others they could use to continue their game.

She continued: Naturally, I had no intention of keeping the football so I later donated them to a charity shop.

The matter was reported as a theft by the football club to the police and Anny claims that since then she has since been "hounded" by police through personal visits, emails and phone calls.

Anny said: Surely the civilised line is to stop trying to get money from me - the victim - and for all parties to sit down and work, with mutual respect, on a way to prevent this situation re-occurring?"

This year Exeter City Council erected a sign on the field asking users not to trespass on neighbouring properties to recover balls.

Team supervisor Mr Leisk, who is a police officer, said earlier this year a local resident approached the chairman after two balls had gone into her garden.

He said: "Our chairman was very apologetic about the situation and offered to provide the resident with all the relevant details of the insurance policies so that she could claim for any damage that had occurred.

The resident declined this stating there was no damage and at no point was an injury mentioned. The club is now aware the resident has disposed of them prior to the police speaking to her.

The police have asked the club's views on any form of action they may take and the club have confirmed they feel that it is only right for the resident to compensate the club for the 26 for the cost of the balls.

A spokesperson for Devon and Cornwall Police said: While officers met with Ms Kilbourne, she raised concerns in relation to previous anti-social behaviour going back years linked to footballs being kicked into her garden and damaging her property; at no time previously had Ms Kilbourne been in touch with the police in relation to these matters.

"Ms Kilbourne has since refused to engage with police on this matter, despite numerous attempts to reach out to her and to find a solution.'

Full Article: https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/football-club-calls-police-after-18773522



The UK is pretty split down the middle on this one, so what do Americans think?
---

Sandlot
---

I'm not American so fuck off with your discrimination

Club are being fucking **************** so either learn how to play properly or stop bitching
---

She deserves to be "hounded by the police" for stealing the balls. If people are trespassing on her lawn, she should report them to police, or sue them.

If this was America, I'd say not fair not next. Trespassing is illegal.

But since it's not America, I don't know their rules.
---

how about they stop kicking balls into her property? if you are so good a SOCCER stop kicking it in the wrong direction xD

fools
---

Why don't they put up a large net next to the fence to stop the balls from going onto her property?
---

Your balls are mine.
---

Maybe the kickers should practice on the other side of the field, have the linemen practice near her property.
---

Were_Wyrm posted...

Maybe the kickers should practice on the other side of the field, have the linemen practice near her property.

You can't really train in way that means you only kick balls in one direction
---

Seems like a situation where if it had been handled in a more mature way earlier by both parties it may have not escalated. I don't blame the woman tbh.

She should kick their balls.
---

One could say the balls are in her court now.... or not...
---

She should move.
---

All your balls are belong to us
---

Id knife the balls and throw em back
---

Lordgold666 posted...

Id knife the balls and throw em back

Haha, I like this.
---

Thrillwell posted...

She should move.

The fuck she should
---

How is it theft when they know that their property is often launched in to other's land? It's like if I started leaving balls in other people's mailboxes. Abandonment of property, littering, etc. The club should all be rounded up and jailed for criminal conspiracy.
---

Woman sounds like a fucking idiot trying to make a point for nothing. Just throw the balls back. Who gives a shit?

Wait, they just want 26 for all the balls lost? They're being a bunch of assholes if so. Take the fucking loss and find a better solution to avoid repeats.
---

E32005 posted...

how about they stop kicking balls into her property? if you are so good a SOCCER stop kicking it in the wrong direction xD

fools

this
---

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.
---