Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic <\/p>\n
WARNING: This article includes language that some readers may find offensive<\/p>\n
Matildas skipper Sam Kerr has been found not guilty on one charge of racially aggravated harassment in a UK court after she called a police officer \u201cf\u2013king stupid and white.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, the judge cautioned Kerr that \u201cher own behaviour\u201d in the police station had contributed to the case being brought in the first place.<\/p>\n
After deliberating for a touch over four hours, the jury handed down their verdict at Kingston Crown Court, London, just after 2pm on Tuesday (1am, Wednesday, AEST).<\/p>\n
Kerr looked down as she found out the verdict and then hugged wellwishers including her family.<\/p>\n
News Corp Australia\u2019s Sophie Ellsworth, who was in court, said that many of Kerr\u2019s supporters in the public gallery broke down in tears as the verdict was read out \u2013 including her fiance Kristie Mewis.<\/p>\n
Kerr showed no emotion during the reading of the verdict but gave a thumbs up to her lawyer after the judge had left. An expressionless Kerr left the court shortly afterwards before posting a statement to social media.<\/p>\n
\u201cFollowing today\u2019s not guilty verdict, I can finally put this challenging period behind me,\u201d Kerr wrote.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile I apologise for expressing myself poorly on what was a traumatic evening, I have always maintained that I did not intend to insult or harm anyone and I am thankful that the jury agreed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would like thank my partner Kristie, my family, friends and all the fans for their love and support, especially those who attended court each day.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am fully focussed on getting back on to the pitch and looking forward to an exciting year ahead for me and my family.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Metropolitan Police also released a statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur officers perform a challenging job and are often subjected to various forms of abuse as they discharge their duty. We will continue to support all officers involved in this incident,\u201d it read.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe matter was fully investigated with evidence presented to the Crown Prosecution Service who made the decision to charge.<\/p>\n
\u201cA jury has found Kerr not guilty and we respect their verdict.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018Kerr\u2019s behaviour contributed to court case\u2019<\/p>\n
According to The Daily Telegraph, Justice Peter Lodder told the jury to consider three things: did Kerr look to cause the police officer hurt, alarm and distress; did she indeed cause him hurt alarm or distress; and were her comments racially aggravated. The jury decided not.<\/p>\n
After the verdict, Justice Lodder said Kerr\u2019s actions in the police station had not helped her situation.<\/p>\n
\u201cI take the view her own behaviour contributed significantly to the bringing of this allegation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t go behind the jury\u2019s verdict but that has a significant bearing on the question of costs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe behaviour she has to accept by virtue of the video recording\u201d.<\/p>\n
The not guilty plea brings to an end a saga that began more than two years ago after a drunken night out in London.<\/p>\n
In January, 2023, the Chelsea star was with fellow footballer Mewis when they became embroiled in a fracas in a taxi which saw the back window of the vehicle kicked out and the driver accuse the pair of refusing to pay clean up costs after one of them vomited.<\/p>\n
The driver ended up taking them to Twickenham police station in the city\u2019s south west.<\/p>\n
At the police station, Kerr, 31, told Officer Stephen Lovell it felt like her and Mewis were being \u201cheld hostage\u201d in the taxi.<\/p>\n
Taking the stand, Mewis claimed PC Lovell was \u201cimmediately dismissive\u201d of the couple and ignored their protestations that they had been \u201ctaken against our will\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wasn\u2019t believing what we were saying\u201d.<\/p>\n
Mewis added: \u201cIt felt a little bit like gaslighting\u201d.<\/p>\n
The pair claimed police dismissed their insistence they had called emergency services from the taxi, but a phone recording proved they had done exactly that.<\/p>\n
During the trial, video was entered into evidence of Kerr at Twickenham police station which showed her sparring with Officer Lovell, saying she would refuse to pay the damage to the taxi because the driver was a \u201cdodgy c***\u201d. Although she did later pay $1800 to the driver for the damage which avoided a criminal damage charge.<\/p>\n
\u2018Calm down missy\u2019<\/p>\n
After insisting the pair felt they had been in danger and those fears were ignored, Kerr was then alleged to have become \u201cabusive and insulting\u201d towards PC Lovell, calling him \u201cstupid and white\u201d.<\/p>\n
It was that remark that was at the centre of the racially aggravated harassment charge.<\/p>\n
The police officer said he had felt \u201cshocked, upset and humiliated\u201d by Kerr\u2019s comment.<\/p>\n
However, an initial statement from PC Lovell on the incident didn\u2019t make mention of the \u201cstupid and white\u201d comment and no case was brought. The case only went ahead when he submitted a second statement 11 months later that contained the comment.<\/p>\n
On the video recording from the police station, PC Lovell can be heard telling Kerr: \u201cYou need to calm yourself down little missy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Both Kerr and PC Lovell said in court they could have handled the situation better.<\/p>\n
In the dock, Kerr, who is mixed race, argued her \u201cstupid and white\u201d comment did not amount to racial aggravation. She denied using \u201cwhiteness as an insult\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI believed it was him using his power and privilege over me because he was accusing me of being something.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was trying to express that due to the power and privilege they had, they would never have to understand what we had just gone through and the fear we were having for our lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Kerr said she was not saying the policeman was stupid \u201cbecause he was white\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u2018Completely unacceptable\u2019<\/p>\n
Kerr\u2019s lawyer Grace Forbes tried to persuade the jury that it was police that were at fault when it came to two women who were genuinely in fear.<\/p>\n
She claimed it was \u201ccompletely unacceptable\u201d police had not taken Kerr\u2019s and Mewis\u2019 allegations against the cab driver more seriously.<\/p>\n
The first \u201cvital minutes\u201d of the encounter between police and the two footballers was not recorded by bodycams, said Ms Forbes.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven if you are drunk, you can still be a victim of crime,\u201d she added, per The Guardian.<\/p>\n
\u201cPC Lovell conceded in evidence that their allegations were capable of amounting to dangerous driving and false imprisonment. Why did he say on the night what she had told him didn\u2019t amount to any offences?<\/p>\n
The image of Kerr presented by the bodycam footage of her drunk in the police station was a \u201cone dimensional image\u201d, her lawyer said.<\/p>\n
\u2018What if PC Lovell had been black?\u2019<\/p>\n
But prosecution lawyer Bill Emlyn Jones attempted to cut to what he said was the core of the case after the Matildas star\u2019s mother and teammates had flocked to her defence.<\/p>\n
After Kerr was described as a \u201ctruly special human,\u201d and one of the \u201ckindest players\u201d, Mr Jones said it was irrelevant because she had still called a policeman, \u201cf\u2013king stupid and white\u201d.<\/p>\n
Mr Jones said what happened in the taxi didn\u2019t make \u201cone blind bit of difference to what this case is about,\u201d and said Kerr was \u201cdrunk and angry,\u201d and \u201clashing out in a rage\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the heat of the moment this was an insult delivered in reference to race and that is what the law prohibits,\u201d Mr Jones said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe test for you is the same regardless of the ethnicity in question. She was insulting him and, at the time, she was hostile to him by reference to his race.<\/p>\n
\u201cWould we consider this a racially aggravated insult if she had said stupid and black? Of course you would, it wouldn\u2019t even be contestable.\u201d<\/p>\n
How the Sam Kerr saga played out<\/p>\n
January 29, 2023: Sam Kerr scores a hat trick in the club\u2019s FA Cup showdown with Liverpool at Kingsmeadow. The 3-2 win sees Chelsea progress to the fifth round of the competition.<\/p>\n
January 30, 2023: Sam Kerr celebrates her performance with a night out with partner Kristie Mewis. Kerr mentioned earlier in the trial that she was \u201cintoxicated\u201d. It is alleged one of the women vomited in a taxi they booked to take them back to their London home.<\/p>\n
Kerr has alleged the driver acted \u201ccrazy\u201d and refused to let them leave. The driver called police and drove to Twickenham Police Station where police allegedly noticed a broken window, glass on the ground outside the vehicle and damage to the plastic guard inside the taxi. Kerr is held in custody and speaks with Police Constable Stephen Lovell. Body camera footage shows her calling Lovell \u201cstupid and white\u201d. Footage also shows Kerr describing the taxi driver as a \u201cf\u2013king liar\u201d and a \u201cstupid c\u2013t\u201d.<\/p>\n
January 31, 2023: Kerr returns to Twickenham Police Station where she is formally interviewed by police constable Ryan Skinner for 20 minutes. Kerr tells Skinner she would say sorry if she was now able to say something to Lovell.<\/p>\n
December, 2023: Lovell submits a second statement saying he was \u201cshocked, upset, and (left) me feeling humiliated\u201d. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) \u2013 the body in England and Wales that decides if cases should go to trial \u2013 originally decided not to charge Kerr.<\/p>\n
January 21, 2024: Kerr is charged with a racially aggravated offence under Section 4A Public Order Act 1986.<\/p>\n
March 4, 2024: Kerr pleads not guilty.<\/p>\n
April, 2024: Hearings were delayed after the Crown Prosecution Service were unable to gather enough evidence, including CCTV footage, to cross examine the football superstar.<\/p>\n
January 15, 2025: Sam Kerr appears at Kingston-upon-Thames Crown Court where her hopes of having the case dismissed before it goes to trial are dashed.<\/p>\n
February 4: The case begins on the opening day with prosecution showing 30 minutes of footage captured on Lovell\u2019s body camera.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic WARNING: This article includes language that some readers may find offensive Matildas skipper Sam Kerr has been found not guilty on one charge of racially aggravated harassment in a UK court after she called a police officer \u201cf\u2013king stupid and white.\u201d However, the judge<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":203082,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[58],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-203081","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/203081","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=203081"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/203081\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":203083,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/203081\/revisions\/203083"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/203082"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=203081"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=203081"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=203081"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}