A MOTHER noticed bruising on her eight-year-old son's buttocks when she gave him a bath after a visit to his father.

Blackburn magistrates heard that the boy had been punished for lying and defence solicitor Ian Holland said there was a fine line between what was proper and what was wrong.

Jason Lynton Woods, 29, of Francis Street, Darwen, pleaded guilty to assault. He was fined £150 with £65 costs and ordered to pay £50 compensation to his son.

A charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, to which Woods had pleaded not guilty and which the magistrates had directed to be heard at Preston Crown Court was withdrawn.

Claire Fanning, prosecuting, said Woods and the child's mother had not lived together since he was born and there had been no contact between father and son until a few months ago.

The boy had begun to ask about his natural father and contact was eventually established.

The boy began to stay with his father once every two weeks and when he returned from one of these visits his mother noticed bruising on his buttocks and other injuries.

The boy said he had been spanked for lying.

When interviewed, Woods was candid about having reprimanded the boy for making up stories and accepted that he had slapped him on the bottom.

Mr Holland said the other injuries the boy had were nothing to do with his father and this had been accepted by the prosecution.

"My client was faced with an eight-year-old boy who was lying about being bullied," said Mr Holland.

"He administered an old fashioned smack to the bottom. He accepts that he probably went too far and he is sorry for that.

"He thought he had simply smacked his son for lying and that was that," said Mr Holland.

"He was far from sure that he had caused the injury."