A Conservative councillor's political career is in the balance after he was found guilty of assaulting two boys.

Kieron Mallon, who is Oxfordshire county councillor for Easington, was convicted at Banbury Magistrates' Court.

Mallon, 38, denied the charges and said he had been acting in self-defence when he hit the teenagers after a confrontation in the street, but the magistrates found him guilty of common assault.

He is also a Cherwell district councillor for Easington and a member of the district council's executive board.

The former soldier, who runs his own business, is not due to be sentenced until November 14. The severity of the sentence could determine whether or not he can continue serving as a councillor.

Keith Mitchell, fellow Tory and leader of Oxfordshire County Council, said Mallon would automatically be disqualified from office if he received a custodial sentence of three months or more.

"That's the legal position as I understand it," he added. "Otherwise it would be for councillors to take a view."

Under Section 39 of the Criminal Justice Act, an offence of common assault could merit a maximum sentence of six months' imprisonment, but it does not usually attract a custodial sentence, particularly a first offence.

Mallon, of Wykham Park Farm Cottage, Banbury, punched the two boys, leaving them with bruising, magistrates were told.

He said he confronted them after they made obscene gestures and threw a snowball at his house.