Jurors at Kingston Crown Court found Mr McCatty not guilty of both counts this afternoon.Really?
…Mr McCatty said she was the aggressor, swearing at him when he politely asked her to move her pushchair, and becoming racially abusive.But didn’t she claim he called her a ‘white bitch’? Did the jury not think that too was racially abusive?
He said he punched her once to stop her getting up and attacking him.I guess punching a woman is OK, according to the jury.
The jury heard he tried to get his buggy when the bus stopped, and attempted to shoe Mrs Whiting-Willett away with his feet.Oh, it seems kicking a woman on the ground is OK too with this jury…
After hearing Mrs Whiting-Willett was planning legal action against the bus company, the defence accused her of lying and exaggerating the incident.Strange. In that case, didn’t the jury stop to wonder why the bus passengers didn’t call the police or intervene on his behalf then?
The defence also claimed no-one on the bus tried to intervene or call the police because they saw Mrs Whiting-Willett was the aggressor.
I am wondering now about the exact make-up of that jury.
Well, it wasn't made up of lairy screeching fat chavs with ambulance chasing lawyers on speed-dial, that's for sure.
ReplyDeleteWhether it was made up of 12 reasonable people who drew a conclusion based on the facts available to them (likely, given Kingston's ethnic composition), or 12 angry black power activists (less so), is less clear.
If I recall the incident at the time (although it may be a different one, sadly there are so many)
ReplyDeleteWasn't there CCTV footage of the incident? in fact there was
Was this not admitted in evidence, or did it show a different story to the one being told.
This is not any defence to the mans behaviour which is repugnant and I'm sure he will be entertaining Her Majesty sometime soon
The weird thing about this case, though, is that everyone involved is skilled-working-class rather than feral - McCatty's an electrician, and Mr Whiting-Willett is a sound engineer (Mrs WW being a stay-at-home mum by the look of things).
ReplyDeleteMakes me think there was most likely a hell of a lot of provocation on both sides, with all the defence's claims being true and probably most of the prosecution's - and that after all that, the jury felt that ruining McCatty's life with a criminal conviction wouldn't really be fare given that the WWs were going to go unpunished for being equally out-of-character-stupid.
(I sat on the jury for a case that was similarly he-said/she-said with awfulness on both sides, but with entirely feral defendants. Our decision went, ahem, the other way).
'fair', obviously. *hangs head in typo shame*
ReplyDeleteIt also looks like she played the 'Victimhood Poker' but got trumped.
ReplyDeleteEdmonton seems like a nice area for feral conker crime.
ReplyDeletePA is reporting this morning that another boy has been stabbed near Silver Street station after remonstrating with conker-throwers.
If it is an offence to be a man (and who doesn't know someone of the other gender who thinks it is) then Wayne McChavvy is not guilty.
ReplyDeleteI imagine the other passengers didn't intervene because they had seen an aggressive black racist punch someone.
ReplyDelete@ john b
ReplyDelete'fair', obviously. *hangs head in typo shame*
As the incident took place on a bus, I thought it rather a neat pun John .. ;)
Well unless, as john b says, the jury consisted entirely of air punching black panthers it's fairly clear that the blubbery white trash was the aggressor.
ReplyDeleteMost Brits still suffer from the delusion that it is wrong for a man to hit a woman under any circumstances(personally I did too...right up to the day a strungout underage streetwalking smack addict tried to gut me with a kitchen knife...bet she still thinks of me everytime she tries to use her hands).
For 12 'whimsical darlings plucked at random' off Kingston broadway to accept a defence of self defense for punching and 'shoeing' a woman then the evidence must have been iron clad, 24 carat and 110% convincing.
Read all the 'coward' comments on the original article to see what I mean.
"Whether it was made up of 12 reasonable people who drew a conclusion based on the facts available to them (likely, given Kingston's ethnic composition)..."
ReplyDeleteAsk yourself this - who is likely to have more time on their hands to form a jury..?
"Was this not admitted in evidence, or did it show a different story to the one being told. "
Quite. I agree with johnb over one thing - full availability of court transcripts would help.
"The weird thing about this case, though, is that everyone involved is skilled-working-class rather than feral - McCatty's an electrician..."
Is he? Or is that just how he described himself to the court?
"Edmonton seems like a nice area for feral conker crime."
Unbelievable, eh? Or very believable, if you know that area's reputation.
"I imagine the other passengers didn't intervene because they had seen an aggressive black racist punch someone."
ReplyDeleteOne description of the passengers is of them laughing...
"As the incident took place on a bus, I thought it rather a neat pun John .. ;)"
If he hadn't confessed to the typo, I'd have assumed it WAS a pun! ;)
"For 12 'whimsical darlings plucked at random' off Kingston broadway to accept a defence of self defense for punching and 'shoeing' a woman then the evidence must have been iron clad, 24 carat and 110% convincing."
Ah, if only we had that court transcript. I fear we might learn something we wouldn't like to admit to ourselves...