Man fined after barbecue headbutt on sister-in-law

A family barbecue turned sour when a man headbutted his sister-in-law.

Steven Bosley, aged 33, of Kenn Moor Drive, began to argue with his wife at a barbecue at their home in Clevedon on May 30. His wife’s sister, Heather Lowick, saw the argument and decided to step in.

Ian Dawes, prosecuting at North Somerset Courthouse on Thursday, said Bosley was holding his wife’s arms down on the sofa when Ms Lowick walked into the living room.

When she entered, Bosley got off the sofa and walked towards her.

In Ms Lowick’s victim statement, which was read in court, she said: “He held my shoulder and just headbutted me. There were no words exchanged between us. It was a complete surprise.

“My nose started to bleed and I could feel pressure on the bridge of my nose.”

She suffered soft tissue injuries but her nose was not broken.

Mitigating Nigel Yeo said: “There was an argument between him and his wife, he is not even clear about why the argument started. His wife was in some way physical towards him, he felt he had to hold his wife’s arms down to prevent the matter from escalating. At that moment his wife’s sister came in.

“She takes the view it is Bosley who is the aggressor and she is quite agitated.

“He gets to his feet and right in front of him is his wife’s sister and without giving any thought to the consequences he headbutted her. There is a friendly relationship between the defendant and his wife’s sister. There have been no incidents in the past.

“He doesn’t know why he did it. It is something he is very remorseful about.”

Bosley was fined £440 and ordered to pay £100 compensation, a £44 victim surcharge, £85 in costs and a £150 court fee.