A HUNTSWOMAN battered a female saboteur with a mobile phone before knocking her over with her horse, a court heard.

Sophie Tuffin allegedly attacked Alexandra Dennis as the pair argued over a right of way.

Sophie Tuffin on horseback, holding a phone, at the time of an alleged assault.Sophie Tuffin allegedly attacked a saboteur with her phone Credit: BNPS Alexandra Dennis leaving Weymouth Magistrates Court.Alexandra Dennis was confronted over a right of way, a court heard Credit: BNPS

Weymouth Magistrates’ heard Tuffin was hosting the Blackmore and Sparkford Vale Hunt on her family’s estate in Dorset at the time.

The 40-year-old confronted Alexandra when she saw the hunt saboteurs in a neighbouring farmer’s field.

JPs heard Tuffin asked the group to leave and showed Alexandra a map on her mobile showing there was no public access.

The mum-of-two then allegedly hit Alexandra with the phone – leaving her with bruising to her face.

Her 750kg horse is said to have made contact with the saboteur and knocked her to the ground.

The court heard Alexandra suffered bruising to her toes and lower leg from where the horse had stood on her.

Tuffin has pleaded not guilty to a charge of and her lawyer claims the saboteur was there to provoke members of the hunt.

JPs were told the alleged attack took place at Hile Farm in the hamlet of Puxey, Dorset, on December 10, 2024.

Sophie Tuffin, a woman with blonde hair tied in a ponytail and wearing sunglasses, a white vest top, and black trousers, walking while holding a black purse.Tuffin has denied the charge Credit: BNPS Alexandra Dennis leaving Weymouth Magistrates Court.She claimed Alexandra must have fallen ‘on her own accord’ Credit: BNPS

Alexandra, who is a member of North Dorset Hunt Saboteurs, had a bodyworn camera on her which recorded the incident.

She said she had accessed a neighbouring farmer’s field on a public footpath that ran through it when the hunter approached her.

After being told to leave, Alexandra argued she was on a footpath and said she tried to show hunt members the OS map on her phone to prove she was in the right.

Charlie Mayo, son of the huntmaster, then got off his horse and pushed her towards a gate out of the field, the court heard.

He allegedly repeatedly told her “get back, get back to the lane”.

Alexandra said Tuffin then intervened, adding: “She came over trying to show her phone which didn’t show any footpath.

“She was inches from my face. She hit me in the face with her mobile phone.”

Charles Nightingale, prosecuting, asked her: “Was there any doubt in your mind you were on the footpath?”

She replied: “No doubt whatsoever, I had my OS map and GPS.”

When asked if there was “any need for any force to be used at all”, Alexandra said there was not as she was “just filming”.

She also told the court even if she had been on private land, there was still a requirement to show necessity to use force in getting her to leave.

In cross-examination, Sarah Barnard, representing Tuffin, suggested the defendant had not hit her in the face and she had fallen over herself without the horse touching her and made up the assault.

Akexandra responded: “No, it’s literally on video. She smashed me in the face with her mobile phone, you can hear it.”

Ms Barnard asked: “You were there to provoke an incident weren’t you?”

The alleged victim replied: “No, I was stood at a distance filming, they came over to me.”

The court also heard from Detective Constable Steve Allen, who used the longitude and latitude recorded on the bodycam footage to establish the location and said he believed Alexandra was on a public footpath.

When interviewed by , Tuffin denied shoving her phone in the saboteur’s face and said she “must have fallen over on her own accord”.

The trial was adjourned and will resume on September 21.