We have no idea if anything was said to her to provoke this - even if the news report they call him an unidentified man which I assume means that he has not given his side of the story.
I don't know if she was provoked or not - I only hope that whatever the provocation I would never respond to anything in that ignorant, shameful and undignified a manner.
Good, things are not as bad as I thought with the justice system, although I would question whether there was ever any realistic prospect of a conviction for the main offence that the defendant was charged with. It was also BTP that went way over the top with the Emma West case but in fairness they would only have come in for more criticism from the uninformed who constantly label them as a bunch of racists if they didn't. Hopefully, lessons will be learnt.
So she is drunk and racist. He is sober, racist and sexist and initiates a bullying confrontation with a lone female. And she gets taken to court? Hmmm
The asian man looked quite laid back and comfortable in his seat giving out his insults. Is that the sort of thing we are to expect nowadays? I'm glad she stood up to him, there are quite a lot of people who would have been less inclined to challenge him.
if that had been a bloke wearing a poppy, the Asian chap would have like as not got more than abuse, as it is he picked on a lone woman, if he did say those things to her, calling her names, and the blood on the hands diatribe no wonder she went off the deep end.
Gromit, as to why we are in Afghanistan, look it up if you don't know. I wish we hadn't ever gone there, but that is not the issue is it ?
I have watched the film but cannot make out anything he is saying. Other than her version of what he said is there another film or a transcript anywhere which makes it clear what he says that is so provocative?
// if that had been a bloke wearing a poppy, the Asian chap would have like as not got more than abuse //
If it had been a man he wouldn't have said anything in the first place. He's probably not used to women answering back and thought he'd found an easy target to abuse.
So we don't actually know that there was any provocation and that this wasn't just a defence dreamed up by the defendant... which means a lot of people are making a lot of assumptions about his behaviour, comments, etc.
I don't know - maybe it did happen as she said, but possibly it didn't - people don't always tell the truth in court...
I wouldn't have thought provocation was a defense but rather a mitigation.
If that was the basis of the juries acquittal it would have been correct for them to find her guilty and for the judge to have taken the provocation into account during the sentencing.
Difficult to think she didn't intent to cause alarm or distress!
Still that's we have a jury system and part of that is accepting so called 'perverse verdicts'