LEBANON — A property line dispute that turned ugly is at the heart of a Warren County court case that could send one man to prison for up to eight years for assaulting his neighbor.

        Turtlecreek Township resident Jerry Little told jurors Thursday that his 56-year-old neighbor, John Webb, who also is charged with driving his lawnmower while drunk, provoked an argument, then beat him Sept. 6 while he collected his mail at the foot of his Utica Road driveway.

        “His arms were a-flailin' like a madman,” Mr. Little described the incident. Assistant Prosecutor James Beaton characterized it as an “ambush and a pulverizing.”

        But Mr. Webb, who claims self-defense against a charge of felonious assault, contends he was merely cutting his 5-acre lot on his riding mower while having a few beers when Mr. Little accused him of being on his property.

        Mr. Webb told jurors that he fought back after Mr. Little got upset that he was blowing grass clippings into his yard, challenged him to a fight, then hit him in the side of the face, breaking his glasses.

        Defense attorney John Quinn implied through questioning that sheriff's deputies conducted an incomplete investigation because they did not look into Mr. Webb's side of the story.

        Mr. Little, who received six stitches around his eye and a large contusion on his head, said he still suffers from headaches and dizzy spells as a result of the fight.

        Prosecutors must prove that Mr. Webb intended to inflict serious physical harm on his neighbor to land a conviction. Jurors in Warren County Common Pleas Court are expected to begin deliberating after closing arguments today.

        The misdemeanor drunk driving case is pending in Lebanon Municipal Court and will be heard separately, Mr. Quinn said. Ohio law prohibits the operation of a motorized vehicle anywhere in the state while intoxicated.

        To Mr. Webb's defense on that charge, Mr. Quinn said: “I think he just might have a constitutional right to drive his lawnmower around drunk in his own front yard.”

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