On Friday afternoon, as District Judge, Vanessa Lloyd, read out a not-guilty verdict, cheers and whoops erupted from the public gallery at Westminster magistrates’ court. On the floor of the courtroom, a nine-month-pregnant woman named Marieha Hussain instantly broke down in tears. The ruling was the culmination of an almost year-long ordeal, which saw 37-year-old Hussain lose her job, have her family’s home address exposed by tabloid newspapers, and her reputation tarnished.
The charge Hussain faced was of a racially aggravated public order offence — undoubtedly a serious crime which warrants handling with the utmost care. But in the case of Hussain, this could not have been further from the truth, and the absurd episode is a disturbing tale of judicial overreach, media harassment and political posturing.
