No qualms, huh? How about that? We'll see whether the long arm of the law intervenes and calls a no-ball.Donny wrote:England allrounder and 2017 IPL Most Valuable Player Stokes attracted the most attention and was sold to Rajasthan Royals for $2.4 million and will play under skipper Steve Smith.
Ben Stokes
http://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/ ... lty-affrayStokes pleads not guilty to affray
Ben Stokes has pleaded not guilty to a charge of affray over an incident outside a Bristol nightclub in September. His case was referred to Bristol Crown Court, with a first hearing set for March 12, which which is in the middle of England's tour of New Zealand but he is expected to now link up with the squad.
It is understood he will not be required to appear in person on March 12 . As a result, he will be free to resume his playing career - both with England and in the IPL - in the coming weeks.
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The case was referred up to Crown Court, with a trial set for next month. Stokes' not-guilty plea was entered on the basis of self-defence and he was granted unconditional bail.
England back Stokes to play in first Test despite court case
https://www.theage.com.au/sport/cricket ... 4zsau.html
https://www.theage.com.au/sport/cricket ... 4zsau.html
Cricketer Ben Stokes 'mocked gay men before nightclub fight'
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-bristol-45082248
[Comment: Following this requires a bit more concentration when two opposition figures are named Hales and Hale.]
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-bristol-45082248
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Nicholas Corsellis, prosecuting, said Mr Stokes, 27, had "knocked Mr Hale unconscious and then - after time to pause for thought, to calm - he did exactly the same to Mr Ali".
The prosecutor described Mr Stokes's actions as "well beyond acting in self-defence or defence of another".
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A video showed Mr Ali hitting Mr Barry on the shoulder with a bottle.
Mr Stokes threw a punch at Mr Ali, and the pair fell to the ground, the jury were told.
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He said that in the footage Mr Stokes' England team-mate Mr Hales could be heard to say: "Stokes, Stokes, that's enough."
Mr Ali said "move away, move away" and Mr Hale said "stop, stop", Mr Corsellis told the court.
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[Comment: Following this requires a bit more concentration when two opposition figures are named Hales and Hale.]
https://www.theage.com.au/sport/cricket ... 4zwvq.html
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Nicholas Corsellis, prosecuting, suggested the reason he was having problems remembering exactly what happened that night was because he was "actually really very drunk", which Stokes denied.
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"It's clearly in my statement that I admit to throwing multiple punches. At the time of that situation, I constantly felt under threat from Mr Ali."
Mr Corsellis asked Stokes if he had a "significant memory blackout" from the night in question.
Stokes replied: "You could say that, yes."
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Stokes' England teammate next in crosshairs in affray case
https://www.theage.com.au/sport/stokes- ... 4zxae.html
https://www.theage.com.au/sport/stokes- ... 4zxae.html
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Stokes is accused of knocking Ali to the floor, with fellow cricketer Hales then apparently kicking his head and stamping on him as he lay on the ground.
The all-rounder is said to have knocked Hale unconscious before doing the same to Ali a short time later.
Ali suffered a fracture to the medial orbital wall on the left hand side of his face, with swelling on his left eye and a laceration above his eyebrow, a cracked lower left molar and a bruise behind his left ear.
Jurors have been told that Hales was interviewed under caution but not arrested or charged in connection with the incident.
Gordon Cole QC, representing Stokes, questioned whether his client had caused all of the injuries sustained by Ali given Hales' alleged involvement.
He asked the jury to carefully consider footage taken by student Max Wilson, who began filming from his bedroom window after hearing shouting from the street below.
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England cricketer Ben Stokes found not guilty of affray over street fight
https://www.theage.com.au/sport/cricket ... 4zxij.html
[Comment: one wonders what is needed to be found guilty of affray. There were suggestions that affray was too light a charge for the severity of his actions. There was a minute's worth of video, which was publicly available for everyone to see. The only reported defence statement so far that seems to make any sense and have any chance of being true is the suggestion that some of the injuries suffered may have been the result not of his punches but of his teammate's kicking and stomping. Did the prosecution need to prove that the fractured orbital wall was caused by him in order for him to be found guilty? Is it not enough to demonstrate that some proportion of the flurry of wild punches he threw connected with the two victims? This is not good for cricket.]
https://www.theage.com.au/sport/cricket ... 4zxij.html
[Comment: one wonders what is needed to be found guilty of affray. There were suggestions that affray was too light a charge for the severity of his actions. There was a minute's worth of video, which was publicly available for everyone to see. The only reported defence statement so far that seems to make any sense and have any chance of being true is the suggestion that some of the injuries suffered may have been the result not of his punches but of his teammate's kicking and stomping. Did the prosecution need to prove that the fractured orbital wall was caused by him in order for him to be found guilty? Is it not enough to demonstrate that some proportion of the flurry of wild punches he threw connected with the two victims? This is not good for cricket.]
Affray, according to the BBC:
"What is affray? Analysis from Clive Coleman, BBC legal correspondent
Under the Public Order Act 1986, 'a person is guilty of affray if he uses or threatens unlawful violence towards another and his conduct is such as would cause a person of reasonable firmness present at the scene to fear for his personal safety'.
So, though it may seem odd, the offence is not designed simply to protect those involved in the violent incident itself: it is also designed to protect other people who are present.
That could include, for example, passers by in a street, those drinking in a pub, or fans at a football game when violence is threatened or actually occurs.
However, the 'person of reasonable firmness' need not actually be present at the scene.
This person is sometimes known as the 'hypothetical bystander' and it is he or she rather than the victim, who must fear for his or her personal safety.
There must be a 'victim' present against whom the violence is to be directed, and some conduct, beyond the use of words, which is threatening and directed towards a person or people."
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-bristol-45182868
[Comment: does this 'person of reasonable firmness' need to fear for his own safety, or is it enough for him to fear for someone else's safety? If the former, maybe one can understand the verdict, and maybe the prosecutors laid the wrong charge. If the latter... did the jury see that minute of video footage?]
"What is affray? Analysis from Clive Coleman, BBC legal correspondent
Under the Public Order Act 1986, 'a person is guilty of affray if he uses or threatens unlawful violence towards another and his conduct is such as would cause a person of reasonable firmness present at the scene to fear for his personal safety'.
So, though it may seem odd, the offence is not designed simply to protect those involved in the violent incident itself: it is also designed to protect other people who are present.
That could include, for example, passers by in a street, those drinking in a pub, or fans at a football game when violence is threatened or actually occurs.
However, the 'person of reasonable firmness' need not actually be present at the scene.
This person is sometimes known as the 'hypothetical bystander' and it is he or she rather than the victim, who must fear for his or her personal safety.
There must be a 'victim' present against whom the violence is to be directed, and some conduct, beyond the use of words, which is threatening and directed towards a person or people."
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-bristol-45182868
[Comment: does this 'person of reasonable firmness' need to fear for his own safety, or is it enough for him to fear for someone else's safety? If the former, maybe one can understand the verdict, and maybe the prosecutors laid the wrong charge. If the latter... did the jury see that minute of video footage?]
It does seem that bystanding people "of reasonable firmness" have to fear for their own safety for the charge of affray to be upheld.
If that's correct, then surely the prosecution laid an inappropriate charge. Under those terms, Stokes would have had to be indiscriminately charging at everybody, not just two specific people. It sounds like absurd bungling. How can they give the defendant's team the get-out that someone watching from her upstairs window was not frightened for her own personal safety? Perhaps this is what happens when, for whatever reason, prosecutors look for a lighter charge to apply to a public figure. What should perhaps be, for example, GBH (or whatever they call it in the UK) becomes affray, which then becomes an acquittal.
https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk ... t-15028375...
During submissions, lawyers argued that Stokes did not commit affray as his conduct did not "cause a person of reasonable firmness" to fear for their safety - part of the requirements for the charge.
Mr Cole told the court: "We have had the evidence of Andrew Spure, that he put himself into the middle of the incident.
"He has never said in his evidence that any of the violence was directed towards him, neither did he say that there were any threats directed towards him.
"Basically, he went to break up what was going on."
Mr Cole said two passers-by could be seen on the road and they continued looking for a taxi, rather than being "perturbed" by what was happening.
"Our submission is, however unattractive, it is a fight rather than an offence exhibiting the demonstration of affray," he told the judge.
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The court heard evidence from Jess Thomas, a resident who retreated to bed after seeing the fight below her window.
But Anna Midgley, representing Ali, said: "Jess Thomas, in her statement, says that she was frightened but she doesn't say she was frightened for her personal safety."
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If that's correct, then surely the prosecution laid an inappropriate charge. Under those terms, Stokes would have had to be indiscriminately charging at everybody, not just two specific people. It sounds like absurd bungling. How can they give the defendant's team the get-out that someone watching from her upstairs window was not frightened for her own personal safety? Perhaps this is what happens when, for whatever reason, prosecutors look for a lighter charge to apply to a public figure. What should perhaps be, for example, GBH (or whatever they call it in the UK) becomes affray, which then becomes an acquittal.