Man not guilty of boy racer shooting

A Taranaki man has been found not guilty of shooting at a boy racer who he said had been tormenting him and his family for 18 months.

The jury took only 90 minutes to acquit 53-year-old crane operator Stan Milne at New Plymouth District Court yesterday, the Taranaki Daily News reported.

Milne was accused of shooting at Scott Wilson, then 17, and his passenger Sandy Perrett in May 2008.

After the verdict yesterday, Mr Milne's wife Heather said for a year-and-a-half Mr Wilson's car would arrive between 1am and 3am.

"We knew it was the same car all the time. We knew it was the same driver by the way it was driven."

Several times their miniature horses were injured when they were spooked by the noise and crashed through fences, she said.

Finally on May 17, 2008, Milne grabbed an air rifle and fired at the car, outside his Plantation Rd property, near Egmont Village.

He was charged with recklessly discharging a firearm and his legal battles began.

Milne said he now believed the best way to successfully prosecute boy racers was to record them on a good-quality video camera to hand over to police.

"Whatever you do, don't grab a slug gun. It's not worth it," he said.

- NZPA