Lauren Pinhorne outside Winchester Crown Court
A mother-of-two was dragged through an 11-month legal wrangle by a council because flowers addressed to her were found among dumped rubbish.
The mother-of-two said she believed the flowers could have been a Valentine’s Day gift from a former boyfriend, while the diary had gone missing from her home months earlier.
Lauren Pinhorne was confronted by investigators who came to her door claiming she had tossed a plastic bag containing the flowers and an old diary at the side of a road.
The 37-year-old vehemently protested her innocence, but Test Valley Borough Council instigated an 11 month legal process, costing taxpayers thousands of pounds.
However, after a day and a half long trial it took jurors at Winchester Crown Court just 20 minutes to clear Ms Pinhorne of fly tipping.
Ms Pinhorne, who was granted legal aid for the case, said the council had spent ‘at least £8,000’ taking her to court, adding she hoped they would learn a lesson and stop wasting taxpayer’s money.
She said her personal life was ‘dragged through the court’ as her diary entries were read aloud.
A spokeswoman for the council claimed they had carried out a ‘thorough’ investigation, adding it was ‘important’ to prosecute people they believe have been fly tipping.
Winchester Crown Court heard a bag containing flowers addressed to Mrs Pinhorne and an old 2017 diary of hers were found on February 12, last year.
Despite telling investigators she knew nothing about the dumping of either of the items in Andover, Hampshire, they refused to believe her.
The mother-of-two vehemently denied fly-tipping and won her case after an 11-month legal wrangle
Speaking after the court case, she said: ‘I knew I had not done this, I clearly told them I had lost the diary but I was threatened with being arrested.
‘Everything I have said has been true, so I brought it to crown court because it felt like I was being set up. None of the rubbish there was mine, I hadn’t dumped it, and they went for me anyway.
‘I have been spoken to really rudely, I actually had to request one of the investigators stop contacting me because of they way he spoke to me.
‘Because they found my old diary, my personal life has been dragged through the court as well – diary entries about personal things were read out.
‘That diary, which had my name inside it, went missing from my home months before it was found.
‘The flowers they found with the diary were in a yellow carrier bag and there was an envelope with my name on in there as well.
‘They must have been a Valentine’s Day present, possibly from a former boyfriend, but I never received them.
‘I am very pleased to have won, but the council have just spent at least £8,000 on the cost of bringing this case.
‘On top of that, they will now have to pay my costs as well so I would estimate it could go up to £12,000 – that’s taxpayers money.
Ms Pinhorne, pictured, from Picket Piece, near Andover, denied one count of fly tipping
Authorities found a bouquet of flowers with Ms Pinmore’s name among some dumped waste and tried to prosecute her for fly tipping. The council claimed they have been successful in 20 out of 21 cases since the start of 2018
‘I hope the council learns a lesson from this, this was a waste of taxpayer’s money.’
Ms Pinhorne, from Picket Piece near Andover, denied one count of fly tipping.
A spokeswoman for Test Valley Borough Council said: ‘We took this to court following a thorough and comprehensive investigation and external counsel advice confirming that there was a case to answer.
‘Although we are naturally disappointed with the result we, of course, respect the court’s decision.
‘We are extremely proud of our record in tackling fly-tipping having been successful in securing a prosecution in 20 out of 21 cases since the start of 2018.
‘The cost to the taxpayer of clearing up fly-tips and impact on communities is significant.
‘That is why it is important the council continues to seek to prosecute those we believe have fly-tipped in order to discourage people from illegally dumping their waste in our beautiful borough.’