An Angus man punched his sister in the face after mistakenly accusing her of breaking his phone.
Derek Smith (27), Strathairlie Avenue, Arbroath, appeared at the town’s sheriff court following the incident on November 20.
He previously admitted seizing his sister Natasha Smith by the throat and punching her in the head to her injury at her home in St Thomas Crescent.
The court heard that Smith attended at his sister’s house while heavily under the influence of alcohol.
Depute fiscal Jill Drummond said Ms Smith’s eight-month-old baby had been sleeping in the bedroom at the time of the assault.
“The complainer was wakened by the sound of a male voice she recognised as the accused,” she told the court.
“She answered the door to prevent her daughter being woken. The accused asked the complainer to call him a taxi and produced a broken phone.”
Ms Smith told her brother that the phone was not working, which triggered an angry response. Smith became aggressive and took a step backwards before grabbing her by the throat with one hand.
Ms Drummond said: “She tried to pull away from his grip but he used his free hand to punch her to the left side of the face near her eye.”
Hearing the commotion, a neighbour rushed to the door and witnessed Ms Smith in a “hysterical” state. The police were then called.
Officers witnessed reddening to Ms Smith’s neck and a bruise that appeared to be fresh.
Her brother was traced to the Brechin Road area and when questioned stated: “I put my hands up to everything.”
Defence agent Ian Flynn said alcohol was to blame for his client’s actions.
“Because of the alcohol consumed, he mistakenly thought his sister had been responsible for breaking his phone. He accepts his behaviour was beyond the pale and puts it down to alcohol.
“Luckily enough has sister did not require any medical treatment.”
Sheriff Peter Paterson fined Smith £250 and ordered him to pay £150 in compensation.