From Wales Online

Lisa Woodhouse calls for more protection for her husband Andrew, who was cleared by a jury of assaulting two thieves on his property

Abergavenny businessman Andrew Woodhouse who was accused of causing grievous bodily harm against a thief he caught in the act, has been found not guilty. Abergavenny businessman Andrew Woodhouse who was accused of causing grievous bodily harm against a thief he caught in the act, has been found not guilty.

The wife of a businessman who escaped jail after attacking two thieves has called for a change in the law after telling Wales on Sunday there would have been “no justice” had he been convicted.

Lisa Woodhouse, 44, said she would have considered a legal challenge in the event of hubby Andrew, also 44, being sent down.

Mr Woodhouse was cleared by a jury in just 20 minutes at Cardiff Crown Court this week after being put on trial following allegations of grievous bodily harm.

He attacked burglars Kevin Green, 53, and Timothy Cross, 32, after chasing them into a field when he caught them stealing diesel from his Abergavenny Tyres business in Llanfoist, Monmouthshire, during a night-time raid last year.

Furious Mr Woodhouse, who also runs a gardening firm, grabbed a fence post one of the pair was carrying and used it as a weapon against them, leaving Green with two broken legs and a broken arm.

Green and Cross were fined £75 – but father-of-five Mr Woodhouse had the prospect of jail hanging over him until this week.

His wife Lisa told Wales on Sunday: “It would have been the wrong way round if he had gone to jail.

“If the worst-case scenario did happen, I would have had to have done something because there would be no justice in Andrew going to prison – someone who has always provided for his boys, provided and worked honestly.

“There would be no justice in Andrew going to prison.”

Lisa revealed Andrew and their family – including sons Josh, 24; Chay-Tyrell, 21; Mikeal, 19; Taezer, 13; and Keserai, 11 – are practising Catholics and had enjoyed the support of their church Our Lady and St Michael in Abergavenny throughout their ordeal.

She said Andrew did good deeds in the community including providing sponsorship and sports equipment for local teams and clearing car parks and playgrounds of snow during winter.

The family’s gardening and tyre businesses, based on the same site in Llanfoist, have been plagued by thefts in the last few years.

One incident saw £20,000 in tools belonging to Andrew stolen from a lock-up on the site.

Lisa said: “We have lost so much through thieves thinking they can help themselves. It’s not just us. A big firm had to move because they were losing too much money.”

Such were the couple’s concerns they paid for an alarm which went off early one morning in March last year while they were in bed at home in Govilon, near Abergavenny.

After Andrew had been gone for 15 minutes, Lisa set off in her car and when she arrived at the site heard shouting.

She saw two men running towards her and Andrew giving chase while telling her to “get the police”, which she did.

By the time she got out of the car, Andrew had incapacitated Green and chased Cross before rugby tackling him and lying on top of him until police arrived.

Lisa says two months later the family had the devastating news Andrew would be charged.

“The stress on the family, Andrew’s parents and his nan, has been terrible. I didn’t go to court. I was a bag of nerves. I only went in to make my statement,” She said.

Wednesday marked the end of the family’s nightmare when a jury found Andrew not guilty of causing grievous bodily harm and now Lisa says the law needs to be further amended to help people acting to protect their own property.

She added: “They have got to do something with the law haven’t they? They have done it if you are in your property – you are allowed to use force if it’s your home. It should be the same for your business.

Speaking this week, Mr Woodhouse said he struggled to see how he would act differently if faced with the same circumstances.

He said: “I thought it was them or me. People should be able to stop someone taking stuff which didn’t belong to them and if they are armed – there’s only one thing you can do to protect yourself.

The Crown Prosecution said it had considered it in the public interest to charge Mr Woodhouse.

It said in a statement: “It was the prosecution case that Mr Woodhouse’s actions during the incident went beyond what the law allows for in terms of self-defence.”

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http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/change-law-says-wife-businessman-6593689