CPS Wessex: Successful Hate Crime Cases in January 2022

During the month of January, prosecutors from CPS Wessex secured successful outcomes in a variety of hate crime cases across the Magistrates’ and Crown Court centres in Dorset, Hampshire and Isle of Wight, and Wiltshire.

It is important to us that we share our successful outcomes to show that hate crimes will not be tolerated, and we will do all we can to prosecute where there is sufficient evidence to satisfy our legal tests.

When a defendant is sentenced for a hate crime, the prosecutor can ask the court to consider increasing the sentence to reflect the seriousness of the crime. This is known as a “sentence uplift”.

Here is a selection of the hate crime cases we prosecuted in January 2022:

The defendant pleaded guilty to a public order offence after he used homophobic language towards a member of staff at a pub. He had been watching a football match during the Euros Tournament and became abusive after he was refused more alcohol. He was fined £557 at Basingstoke Magistrates’ Court, which included an extra £50 to reflect the seriousness of the hate crime.

The defendant pleaded guilty to criminal damage and a public order offence at Poole Magistrates’ Court on 3 January this year. He caused damage to property at a hotel and then shouted homophobic language whilst being arrested by the police. He was already on a Suspended Sentence Order in relation to a difference case, so was sentenced to 18 weeks in prison for these offences and for breaching his Suspended Sentence Order. His sentence was uplifted by three additional weeks to reflect the seriousness of the homophobic language he used.

The defendant racially abused a member of the public at a bus stop and raised his hand to the victim as if to hit them. He pleaded guilty at Poole Magistrates’ Court and was fined £200, which included an additional £50 because of the racial language he used. He was also ordered to pay £50 compensation to the victim.

The defendant pleaded guilty at Weymouth Magistrates' Court to a racially aggravated public order offence after he racially abused football players on the pitch, resulting in the match being abandoned. He was fined £250, increased from £140 to reflect the seriousness of using such racist language, and ordered to pay £50 in compensation.