Female Football Fans Found Guilty Of Ripping Up The Koran.

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2618005/Two-female-football-fans-ripped-pages-Koran-throwing-air-like-confetti-chanting-racist-songs-Muslims.html

Since there are many on AnswerBank who admit to being none believers in religion ie Atheists etc, can they now state whether or not these two women should have been prosecuted for ripping up a religious book?

[ummmm]

'While chanting racist songs about Muslims'

[jim360]

What ummm said. Calling a religious belief wrong, and being racially insulting about it, are entirely different.

[jackthehat]

////Middlesbrough FC supporters Julie Phillips, 50, and Gemma Parkin, 18, have been found guilty of using religiously aggravated threatening or insulting behaviour////

It wasn't just the ripping up of the Koran that they were prosecuted for, but the entire content of their behaviour on that day......a bizarre thing to do at a football match!

[Old_Geezer]

I don't believe folk should feel overly concerned if someone rips up a book or two, or burns a flag, or stuff like that. (Disgust at the total waste aside.) But the fact is that folk are different and some are taught to be majorly offended at such trivia, considering it to be a massive insult. That is a pity.

But on top of that is actions designed to cause trouble regardless of what they were, and society has to place a limit on freedom for the individual to do things; and it sounds like they passed that limit. Whilst not knowing the full tale such as what built up to it, the chanting is unlikely to be acceptable, they would know the reasons behind it.

[sp1814]

From the article:

‘Mrs Phillips was interviewed on January 17 by police when she admitted tearing up the Koran but said she had been handed the book and didn’t know what it was.’

And

‘I tore it up like confetti as that is what people do at a football match.

Is that last statement true?

[anotheoldgit]

/// ‘There was shouting going on and singing, I don’t know the words but it was about the Koran and they mentioned Muslims as well. ///

This is the only evidence that they were chanting racist songs etc.

/// Sentencing chair of the bench Gordon Sayers said: ‘Mrs Phillips we have seen clear CCTV evidence you ripped up the Koran and passed pages around the small group around you. ///

/// ‘You waved pages and tore them up. ///

/// ‘We are satisfied you were aware of what you were distributing. ///

It seems that this is the crime they where proven guilty of since there was no recording of the chants only CCTV evidence of their actions.

[kvalidir]

I've never seen people passing books around a football match for others to tear up to be honest- but then I'm not a die hard go every week kinda girl, so I may be wrong.

[sp1814]

In answer to the question as to whether as a non-believer, whether these two women should have been prosecuted...yes.

Just because I do not follow a religion, doesn't mean I think it's right to disrespect their holy books, wether it be the Bible, the Koran etc.

[ummmm]

I use my bible as a mouse mat :-)

[jackthehat]

///Sentencing chair of the bench Gordon Sayers said: ‘Mrs Phillips we have seen clear CCTV evidence you ripped up the Koran and passed pages around the small group around you.

‘You waved pages and tore them up.

‘We are satisfied you were aware of what you were distributing.

‘We have seen you and Mr Newbold's heads move enough for him to ask you and you to shout the Koran.///

I see.....in this particular instance, you are happy to take the word of the accused and convicted women rather than the decision of the Court.

Strange.....

[DrFilth]

anotheoldgit >
Mark as Best Answer
The policeman was cleared by a jury, end of.
09:35 Thu 01st May 2014 <

> The pair were convicted at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court today following a one-day trial. <



is that another end of ?

[Gromit]

Of course they should have been prosecuted, they broke the law. You don't have to believe in God or Allah to know when people are being insulting and threatening.

I do not particularly like Cameron or Farage, but it someone was being threatening and abusive to them in a public place then I would gladly see them prosecuted.

Just because the abuse was aimed at religious people, and I am not religious does not mean I would support the law being broken like you appear to do AOG.

[sp1814]

I'm not sure what more would be required here.

I supppose that without a taped recording of what these two women were chanting, you have to look at the steward's evidence, and compare it to the defence evidence presented to the court.

Ms Parkin said that the book was in her handbag, but her boyfriend took it out and then it was ripped up and turned to confetti, and that she thought that's what people did at football matches.

Sometimes, people get convicted because they have not presented a good enough defence.

This appears to have happened here. The jury simply didn't believe them.

[ToraToraTora]

I am an atheist but that does not mean I have to disrespect religion generally. I don't understand why anyone with a modicum of sense can believe any of the brands of fairy tales but I tend to live and let live and also adopt some of the general moral messages. However in this case I'd say if anyone is going to rip it up women have more good reason than most!

[DrFilth]

> The pair were convicted at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court today following a one-day trial. <


sp1814 don't think they would have a jury at a magistrates court

sp1814 > ‘I tore it up like confetti as that is what people do at a football match.

Is that last statement true? <

years back they would when the team came out on the pitch do not know about doing that these days

[Gromit]

// there was no recording of the chants only CCTV evidence of their actions. //

Read your own link AOG. Birmingham City's stewards gave evidence that the crowd were making racist chants. The CCTV would have shown them singing event if it did not have sound.

// ‘A club steward Matthew Corne was stood in the Gill Merrick stand. ‘They were also chanting words like “Muslim”, “Koran” and “bayonet”. //

// Mr Cornes asked them what they were doing and asked the control to get the CCTV cameras to monitor them.

‘There was shouting going on and singing, I don’t know the words but it was about the Koran and they mentioned Muslims as well.
‘I had never heard chanting like that before.’ //

[retrocop]

Well it seems the law can turn a convenient blind eye when Muslims burn poppies on Rememberance Sunday.I find that bloody offensive and crass disrespect

[DrFilth]

retrocop i was waiting for aog to post about that

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/paltry-50-fine-for-muslim-who-114862

[sp1814]

Emdadur Choudhury got off way too lightly.

[Gromit]

I enjoy these threads when AOG supports the criminals.