A man who was jailed for three-and-a-half years after his Staffordshire bull terrier mauled a woman has had his conviction quashed by the Court of Appeal in Edinburgh.
Derek Duncan, 24, of Cardean Street, was sent to prison last April after launching an attack on his “best friend” because she binned a two-day-old takeaway meal he had left in the flat they shared in Dundee’s Mains Loan.
The jury took just 40 minutes to find Duncan guilty by majority of assaulting Nadine Crowe, 24, by punching her head, slapping her face and grabbing her throat on May 7 2012, to her injury.
They also found him guilty of sending messages to Ms Crowe’s sister, threatening her with violence, on May 9 2012.
During the assault on May 7, Duncan’s dog savaged Ms Crowe’s face, leaving her needing 45 stitches to her ear, and the jury unanimously convicted him of a charge under the Dangerous Dogs Act.
However, three Appeal Court judges have quashed the conviction after Duncan’s lawyer, Chris Fyffe, maintained Sheriff Elizabeth Munro had misdirected the jury on the legislation.
At the appeal court on Wednesday, depute advocate Ian McSporran said he was conceding the appeal against conviction on the charge that on May 7 2012, at 39B Mains Loan, the Staffordshire bull terrier Kaii was “dangerously out of control” when he bit and mauled Ms Crowe to her severe injury and permanent disfigurement.
Mr Fyffe also confirmed Duncan was appealing his sentences on the other charges. A decision on those appeals will be made after a hearing to be held at a later date.
At the trial on April 12 last year, the jury heard Duncan launched the attack on Ms Crowe after she threw out his left-over meal.
Ms Crowe told the jury he then began to slap her before pinning her down and repeatedly punching her face.
During the assault, his dog Kaii mauled Miss Crowe’s face. Sheriff Munro called it a “vicious, unprovoked assault”.
She jailed Duncan for three-and-a-half years and banned him from having a dog for 10 years.
As he left the dock, Duncan branded Sheriff Munro a “stupid cow” and bragged: “At least the dog’s not getting put down.”