Scottish man given ASBO for hare coursing

A man caught hare coursing in East and Midlothian has received the first Anti Social Behaviour Order (Asbo) for the crime in Scotland.

Keith Livingston, 54, was fined £150 for two offences under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Friday October 23, 2015.

He was caught hunting hares with dogs near Pathhead, Midlothian, during a police crackdown last October.

The conditions of the ASBO prevent him from entering land with a dog or with other people with a dog in the counties of East Lothian and Midlothian for a period of 18 months.

Fresh warnings about the offence – which involves dogs being set on hares – were issued after his arrest, amid concerns about a “year-round” trend in hare coursing, which has historically been a seasonal issue.

PC Jamie Hood, of Police Scotland, said: "Hare coursing is a crime that has no consideration for wildlife or the impact on people who legitimately make a living from the land... This sentence should serve as a serious deterrent to anyone involved in hare coursing in Scotland"