Daughter of WWII pilot convicted of assault after reprimanding teenager who 'vandalised war memorial

Daughter of WWII pilot convicted of assault after reprimanding teenager who 'vandalised war memorial'

By Luke Salkeld
Last updated at 5:58 PM on 10th July 2008

Julie Lake has been convicted of assaulting the boy near a remembrance cross last year

The daughter of a Second World War RAF pilot who reprimanded a teenager who she accused of vandalising a war memorial has been convicted of assault

Julie Lake, 50, believed the 15-year-old was one of a number of youths who had damaged the remembrance garden in her village dedicated to those killed fighting for Britain.
But Mrs Lake was arrested after giving a boy, whom she believed to be the ringleader, a talking-to and a 'cuff round the ear'.
She tackled him after she saw at least one youth riding a BMX bike through freshly-laid flower beds.
Magistrates heard that when she grabbed his shirt collar, he said: 'That's assault'.
Mrs Lake claimed she was performing a 'moral obligation' following months of anti-social behaviour and vandalism at the memorial.
But weeks later she was arrested and yesterday was convicted of assault, criminal damage and a public order offence at North Avon Magistrates Court in Yate, near Bristol.
She was cleared of punching a 14-year-old in the stomach during the fracas.
Sentencing Mrs Lake to a 12-month conditional discharge, District judge David Parsons said she had shown a 'complete lack of self-control'.
She was found guilty of criminal damage for angrily throwing a bicycle belonging to one of the youths into the road, and shouting: 'Now you know what it feels like to have your property damaged'.

The judge rejected her claim the she was trying to perform a citizen's arrest and ordered her to pay £400 towards costs.

He said: 'I'm sure that having seen the damage to the flower beds, you simply lost your temper.

'I can understand you lost it, particularly because of your family relations in the war, and it is hardly surprising that you did.

'You reacted spontaneously, without thought for the consequences.

'You confronted the child with no plan in mind. The throwing of a bike into the road shows a complete loss of self-control, not the actions of someone executing a citizen's arrest.'

Before her arrest, Mrs Lake said she had become frustrated by youths vandalising the garden in Mangotsfield, Bristol.

She said: 'The memorial is a sacred place - it's like a grave. How dare these youngsters tarnish the memories of those who made a sacrifice for future generations?

'I've called the police and I've tried to talk to these kids but I've got nowhere.

'I lost my temper in frustration after two years of trying to get something done and immediately the police are after me. It's ridiculous.'

Mrs Lake's grandfather James Byrne was an infantryman who was killed, aged 29, in the Western Front trenches of France during the First World War

Her father William Byrne was an RAF pilot in World War II, and Julie's husband Peter, 63, a retired airman, also lost his grandfather in the 1914-18 war.

The trial - estimated to have cost taxpayers more than £100,000 - earlier heard how Mrs Lake was surrounded by up to 25 jeering youths by the memorial at the end of last year.

She told how the gang surrounded her, pushed her and shouted: 'You can't touch us, we're 15, we can do what the f*** we like.'

When the 15-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was questioned in court about the war memorial, he replied: ''It means nothing to me, I guess it's for some people who died in the war.'

Mrs Lake said after the hearing: 'I did this for millions of men and women like my grandfather, for whom a war memorial is the only grave they have.

'I did what I did because I believe it was my moral obligation to stand up for those men and women following years of vandalism at the memorial.

'I would like to say thanks for all the support I've received over the past few months which has meant so much to me.'

Lawyer Nick Freeman - known as Mr Loophole after he successfully had a number of celebrities cleared of driving offences - defended Mrs Lake for free following a massive public outcry when she was arrested after the incident.

Speaking outside court, he said: 'The authorities have been inundated with complaints from local residents and it is perverse and ironic that the only person arrested, charged and convicted is the one person who has tended the memorial over this period.

'This is consistent with a small minority of youths who are lawless and have no respect for others, for authority or for property.

'I don't feel that common sense has prevailed and that the protagonists who are responsible for the damage have yet to be questioned about their conduct.'

Members of the Royal British Region were in court to support married Mrs Lake during the four-day trial.

Former serviceman Reg Hall, 78, said: 'It's disgusting that the vandalism has been going on at the memorial for eight years and nobody has stopped it.

'Julie is a hero for trying to take a stand. We are all proud of her.

Daughter of WWII pilot convicted of assault after reprimanding teenager who 'vandalised war memorial' | Mail Online

 

I wonder if "A Clockwork Orange " is getting popular again.

 

I think the best way for the authorities to deal with this is heavilly fining the lads parents for destruction of property. Let's see if they allow the kid to run around after that!


Cheers...

 

That I would agree with. Too many parents are shedding their parental responsibilities. This would force them to get involved in their teen's lives or just pay the fines as they go. More than likely, the parents would hire lawyers (spit) and fight this in court rather than work on the root of the problem, their kids.

 

It´s horrible to see what young kidz do KNOWING they can´t get be touched by law because of their age.....

 

Simply put, that ""Judge"" (and I use these "" literally) is an I~D~10~T!!

 

All the judge managed to do is prove to the vandals that crime does pay.

In the end, its the youths them selves and society in general that have been poorly served by this judge.

 

Minors actually can't be punished in the UK?
This is...ummm...Absurd?

 

I agree. This was the case for under 16 in France but recently a law wil brings the minimum age down to 13 which is more reasonable. Also parents are repsonsible for their kids and if they keep shedding their responsabilities they could get the fines instead of their kids.

 

Well said Skipper! An old Norwegian saying goes: "It take a whole village to raise one child."

I remember when i was a yonker, that if I was seen by one of my neighbors of a friends parent-doing something wrong, they had no qualms about telling my parents.

 

That judge is as much an ignorant as those young hooligans are.

 

It seems that the Kids are the smarter ones. They know how the system will react to and treat them .

 

The sad truth is that the parents of these kids probably do not care and even if they were fined, the local government would have to spend even more trying to collect it. By the time a youth shows such disregard for the law, his community, and general notions of human decency, it is years too late to chastise the parents. I hope that these kids get their comeuppance before they do even more harm.

 

Hear, hear!

 

I think we should ship the kids off to war torn country like Kosovo or Chechnya for a few months. They'll learn what is and isn't important.

 

"Sentencing Mrs Lake to a 12-month conditional discharge, District judge David Parsons said she had shown a 'complete lack of self-control'."

Lack of self-control my butt. She probably wanted to beat the snot out of that little snot but held back.............

The judge has no idea of what's really important. Respect.

tom

 

What can you expect when a country gets to this, now with the help of judges like that?

Police injured in litter mob attack - Yahoo! News UK

Police injured in litter mob attack

Two officers were injured when they were attacked by a mob after asking a teenage girl to pick up some litter she dropped.

​

Up to 30 teenagers attacked the two policemen after the teenager refused their request and became aggressive.
One of the officers required hospital treatment for a bite wound after the attack in North End, central Croydon, south London, on Wednesday afternoon.
Police said violence was sparked after the patrolling officers confronted the teenage girl at about 3pm.
They asked her to pick up a piece of litter which she did, but immediately dropped it on the ground again. When they asked her to pick it up again a friend with the girl became aggressive towards the officers.
A group of up to 30 teenagers gathered around the officers and attacked them. A Metropolitan Police spokesman said the officers, aged 34 and 29, were on sick leave suffering from bruising and knee injuries.
A 15-year-old girl was arrested at the scene on suspicion of assault. She has been released on police bail.
Two men aged 34 and 38, both from South Norwood, were arrested on suspicion of assault and violent disorder on Thursday.
Inspector Simon Ellingham said officers were examining CCTV footage from the area. He said: "We have heard from several retailers in the area who were horrified at the level of violence used by the crowd against the officers.
"If you were in North End, central Croydon, at around 3pm on Wednesday and saw anything of the incident, or have any information, please get in touch."

 

Well, here in
Portugl we are not much better. Three guys tried to rob a friend of mine who is a cop. He was off duty and just beated one with a retracktable baton. However, there was a fully dressed policemen on the other side of the street who did nothing to prevent the attempt. That cop was later asked for his credential and charges were pressed gainst him but still, stuff like this shou not happen.


Cheers...