An elderly woman who slapped her neighbour's eight-year-old child in the face has been handed a $400 fine.
Pensioner Frances Anne Rankin, 77, pleaded guilty to one count of common assault in the Hobart Magistrates Court on Wednesday.
Magistrate Michael Daly said Ms Rankin was having a drink with her neighbour in South Arm last September when the eight-year-old boy refused his mother's requests to leave so they could talk in private.
Magistrate Daly said the child continued playing and behaving in a "heightened manner", with Ms Rankin commenting that "you can see who's boss here".
Ms Rankin then hit the child on the left side of his face with her open right hand.
The magistrate said that when later confronted by her neighbour about the incident, Ms Rankin told her that she had done nothing wrong and had just "clipped" the child around the ear.
The slap did not cause an injury but left a mark.
Magistrate Daly said the child had also had trouble sleeping, and suffered nightmares and difficulty concentrating at school since the incident.
In sentencing Ms Rankin, he said he did not understand how she thought it was ever appropriate to physically remonstrate with the child, no matter how challenging his behaviour was.
"That type of behaviour can't ever justify an assault on a child," he said.
He noted Ms Rankin was remorseful and was confident the incident was "not something that will happen again".
Mr Daly did not record a conviction but said a $400 fine was necessary to show the court's condemnation of Ms Rankin's conduct.
