London--A former British lawmaker was found guilty Friday of attacking two boys aged 14 and 15 in an "unjustified and unprovoked" assault in a shop.
Eric Joyce, 54, who represented the Scottish town of Falkirk from 2000 until parliament was dissolved last month, attacked the teenagers in a shop in north London in October, the city's Westminster Magistrates Court heard.
Joyce insisted he was performing a "citizen's arrest" but District Judge John Zani found him guilty of two counts of common assault.
"Given my findings and your previous convictions, all options including imprisonment will be considered," the judge said.
Joyce was released on conditional bail ahead of sentencing on May 27. He declined to comment as he left court.
The 14-year-old victim had told the court: "He thought I was talking to him and he started getting aggressive.
"He turned around and started saying things like 'You talking to me? You trying to embarrass me?'
"The man grabbed me and would not let me leave."
Prosecutors said Joyce knocked the boy to the floor and held him down.
Elected for the opposition Labour Party, he resigned in 2012 and sat as an independent after he was convicted over a punchup in a parliamentary bar.
Joyce told the court: "I've put my hand up to every wrong thing I've done in my life. That very troubled three years always involved alcohol.
"There was quite clearly an issue with alcohol. There has not been for some time."
Joyce is not standing in next Thursday's general election.
AFP
