A trio of people from Gloucester have pleaded guilty to
attacking a man who hurled homophobic insults at them.
Ria Marsh, 25, Anthony Fairley, 45, and Claire Armitage, 35, all
admitted assaulting their victim - Timothy Challen - when they
appeared at Gloucester Magistrates' Court last week.
The incident, which took place outside the city's Westgate pub
in February, was captured on CCTV.
According to local newspaper The Citizen, prosecuting solicitor
Louise Pinder told District Judge Martin Brown that the defendants
punched and kicked Challen while he was on the sat outside the gay
venue.
He suffered cuts and bruising.
But the defendants
claim they they were provoked by a series of anti-gay
comments.
Defending Fairley, solicitor Nicola Berryman said: "The victim had
been causing trouble and
goading the two women
for a long time and making offensive remarks.
"The pub manager and doorstaff actually asked the victim to
leave and he went and sat outside.
"But then he started to make offensive gestures through the pub
window...There was a high degree of provocation."
The trio were all granted conditional bail.
