By . Harriet Arkell . PUBLISHED: . 06:56 EST, 22 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 19:02 EST, 22 July 2013 . Alex Leaver, 39, was initially convicted of assaulting Jilly Sandamas, 49, but had his conviction overturned on appeal . It is a universal truth that, where there is a neighbours’ dispute, there’s quite often a leylandii not far away. And the row between Jill Sandamas and . Alex Leaver was no exception – although it also involved a stepladder, a . drenching with a hosepipe and two trips to court. The saga began when Mrs Sandamas, 49, . climbed up her stepladder to trim the leylandii branches which overhang . her garden from Mr Leaver’s side of the fence. With her electric hedge cutters in . hand, she was suddenly hit by a huge jet of water when 39-year-old . plumber Mr Leaver turned on his hosepipe. The jet hit Mrs Sandamas full in the . face, knocking her off the ladder. She fell five feet into a flower bed, . hurting her knee, and was so upset she ran to another neighbour’s house . and asked her to call the police. Mr Leaver was charged with the offence of common assault, which has a maximum sentence of up to six months in jail. In January he was convicted of . battery, fined £300 and ordered to pay Mrs Sandamas £100 compensation . plus £790 in costs. But the story was not over yet. He then appealed the . conviction, saying it was an accident and he had not intended to hit . Mrs Sandamas. Now his conviction has been overturned . by an appeal judge at Burnley Crown Court, who believed his version of . events. Mrs Sandamas lives in a £250,000 four-bedroom house in the . village of Barnoldswick, Lancashire, with her husband Mark, the managing . director of an events and exhibition firm. Jilly Sandamas, 39, left, says she was knocked off her ladder by Mr Leaver's hose as she trimmed the hedge . Mrs Sandamas was clipping the leylandi hedge seen here between her house (on the left) and Mr Leaver's . Sarah Statham, prosecuting, told the . court that the couple’s house backed on to Mr Leaver’s £190,000 dormer . bungalow, and they share a border made up of his leylandii hedge and . their wooden fence. Miss Statham said the couple’s garden . fence was ‘somewhat lower’ than the hedge and the leylandii ‘protruded . significantly’ over it. 'For the offence of battery to be made out, the Crown had to demonstrate... that there was an intentional or reckless application of force' - Recorder William Smith . On the day of the incident, neighbours . Keith and Vivienne Hardwick heard Mrs Sandamas using the trimmers from . inside their house next door, the court was told. Mrs Hardwick, 68, saw Mr Leaver using a . hosepipe and said he appeared to be trying to get water over the hedge . deliberately. Her husband, 70, claimed he saw Mr Leaver squeezing the . end of the pipe, as if trying to get more pressure, before aiming for . the ladder. But Mr Leaver denied any deliberate assault on his neighbour, and told officers he could not hear her using the hedge trimmers. Mrs Sandamas lives in a four-bedroomed house in the village of Barnoldswick in the Pennines . Mr Leaver, whose house is pictured, said he did not realise it was better to water a hedge's roots than its top . Yesterday Mrs Sandamas said she did . not want to talk about the case, and instead wanted to consult with . police and Victim Support. But Mr Leaver claimed the incident had . occurred against a background of ill feeling between the two neighbours . which began when he built a conservatory. Mr Leaver said: ‘It was all rather silly and it’s very unfortunate the matter got as far as it did at a crown court. ‘I’ve always wanted to be a good . neighbour. I’ve never had any complaints before and get on well with my . other neighbours – but things simply haven’t worked out between myself . and Mrs Sandamas. ‘It has just been a nonsense and a . complete farce. Now I’m going to have to be very careful if I want to . water my hedge and will have to get my girlfriend to video me doing it . in future.’
Jilly Sandamas, 49, was knocked off ladder by water as she trimmed hedge .
Neighbour Alex Leaver, 39, says he didn't realise mother-of-two was there .
Mrs Sandamas called police after incident in village of Barnoldswick, Lancs .
Mr Leaver was initially convicted of battery but appealed against it and won .
By . Harriet Arkell . PUBLISHED: . 06:56 EST, 22 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 19:02 EST, 22 July 2013 . Alex Leaver, 39, was initially convicted of assaulting Jilly Sandamas, 49, but had his conviction overturned on appeal . It is a universal truth that, where there is a neighbours’ dispute, there’s quite often a leylandii not far away. And the row between Jill Sandamas and . Alex Leaver was no exception – although it also involved a stepladder, a . drenching with a hosepipe and two trips to court. The saga began when Mrs Sandamas, 49, . climbed up her stepladder to trim the leylandii branches which overhang . her garden from Mr Leaver’s side of the fence. With her electric hedge cutters in . hand, she was suddenly hit by a huge jet of water when 39-year-old . plumber Mr Leaver turned on his hosepipe. The jet hit Mrs Sandamas full in the . face, knocking her off the ladder. She fell five feet into a flower bed, . hurting her knee, and was so upset she ran to another neighbour’s house . and asked her to call the police. Mr Leaver was charged with the offence of common assault, which has a maximum sentence of up to six months in jail. In January he was convicted of . battery, fined £300 and ordered to pay Mrs Sandamas £100 compensation . plus £790 in costs. But the story was not over yet. He then appealed the . conviction, saying it was an accident and he had not intended to hit . Mrs Sandamas. Now his conviction has been overturned . by an appeal judge at Burnley Crown Court, who believed his version of . events. Mrs Sandamas lives in a £250,000 four-bedroom house in the . village of Barnoldswick, Lancashire, with her husband Mark, the managing . director of an events and exhibition firm. Jilly Sandamas, 39, left, says she was knocked off her ladder by Mr Leaver's hose as she trimmed the hedge . Mrs Sandamas was clipping the leylandi hedge seen here between her house (on the left) and Mr Leaver's . Sarah Statham, prosecuting, told the . court that the couple’s house backed on to Mr Leaver’s £190,000 dormer . bungalow, and they share a border made up of his leylandii hedge and . their wooden fence. Miss Statham said the couple’s garden . fence was ‘somewhat lower’ than the hedge and the leylandii ‘protruded . significantly’ over it. 'For the offence of battery to be made out, the Crown had to demonstrate... that there was an intentional or reckless application of force' - Recorder William Smith . On the day of the incident, neighbours . Keith and Vivienne Hardwick heard Mrs Sandamas using the trimmers from . inside their house next door, the court was told. Mrs Hardwick, 68, saw Mr Leaver using a . hosepipe and said he appeared to be trying to get water over the hedge . deliberately. Her husband, 70, claimed he saw Mr Leaver squeezing the . end of the pipe, as if trying to get more pressure, before aiming for . the ladder. But Mr Leaver denied any deliberate assault on his neighbour, and told officers he could not hear her using the hedge trimmers. Mrs Sandamas lives in a four-bedroomed house in the village of Barnoldswick in the Pennines . Mr Leaver, whose house is pictured, said he did not realise it was better to water a hedge's roots than its top . Yesterday Mrs Sandamas said she did . not want to talk about the case, and instead wanted to consult with . police and Victim Support. But Mr Leaver claimed the incident had . occurred against a background of ill feeling between the two neighbours . which began when he built a conservatory. Mr Leaver said: ‘It was all rather silly and it’s very unfortunate the matter got as far as it did at a crown court. ‘I’ve always wanted to be a good . neighbour. I’ve never had any complaints before and get on well with my . other neighbours – but things simply haven’t worked out between myself . and Mrs Sandamas. ‘It has just been a nonsense and a . complete farce. Now I’m going to have to be very careful if I want to . water my hedge and will have to get my girlfriend to video me doing it . in future.’
2013 . Alex Leaver, 39, was initially convicted of assaulting Jilly Sandamas, 49, but had his Sandamas and . Alex Leaver was no exception – she was knocked off her ladder by Mr Leaver's hose as she trimmed the hedge . Mrs Sandamas was Barnoldswick in the Pennines . Mr Leaver, whose