Thread by @LondonWorldCom

NEW: A woman who went viral after being "forcibly removed", held down and later prosecuted for attending the Sarah Everard vigil has raised £10,000 for a legal case against the Met Police.
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Activist and student @PatsyeStevenson was charged by the Met for breaching Covid-19 laws by attending a vigil held in memory of the 33-year-old marketing executive, murdered by serving armed cop Wayne Couzens, on Clapham Common on March 13, 2021.

[Photo: @GettyImages]

@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk It comes as another woman prosecuted by the Met Police for attending the vigil for Sarah Everard has crowdfunded thousands of pounds for her legal fees to cover the costs of standing trial.
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@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk Dania Al-Obeid 27, of Stratford, east London, was charged by the Met for breaching Covid-19 laws by attending the vigil.

She has launched a crowdfunding campaign to pay for her legal fees and so far has raised £3,400 of her £5,000 target.

[Photo: @GettyImages stock vigil photo]

@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow Patsy Stevenson has now launched a crowdfunding campaign to pay for her legal case, which has so far raised £10,937 of her £25,000 target.

She said: "I wanted to pay my respects and grieve with other women who felt impacted by this act of violence."

@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow And Dania Al-Obeid said: "I have been on the receiving end of brutal violence, I know what it feels like to have your life flash before your eyes.

"When the news broke about Sarah Everard, I could not shake away the fear and pain she must have felt in her final moments."

@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow Patsy added: "I want to challenge the legality of this ill-treatment by the police, which other women were also subjected to.

"All we wanted was a space to collectively grieve and express anger, but this was denied to us."

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@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow Dania added: "More than a year later, the Met are prosecuting me for breaching Covid-19 regulations."

"It feels surreal, like we’ve lost the bigger picture… like our reasons for attending do not matter, that lives lost to violence aren’t important."
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@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow It comes after feminist activists @ReclaimTS organised a socially-distanced vigil but cancelled after being told they risked £10,000 fines.

They have since fought and won a high court battle with a judge finding police breached their human rights by preventing the planned event.

@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow @ReclaimTS Women - including the Duchess of Cambridge - laid flowers at the bandstand anyway, before police later broke up the gathering and made arrests.

Six people have since been charged with breaching coronavirus restrictions over the event.

@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow @ReclaimTS Police issued nine fines to people who had attended - seven of which were not paid.

Six people were then charged, with participating in a gathering of more than two people in a public outdoor place in a Covid-19 Tier 4 area, with no further action taken in one case.

@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow @ReclaimTS It’s understood these cases were heard under the single justice procedure.

Ms Al-Obeid was convicted in her absence, and later applied to reopen her case.

She pleaded not guilty and told a court, on July 15, that she only became aware of her conviction after media reports.

@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow @ReclaimTS Lawyer @PippaWoodrow, of @DoughtyStPublic chambers, who is representing Ms Al-Obeid: "[I’m] very proud to represent this brave woman.

"She’s right - ‘we should not be silencing those who speak up about violence against women, but using those resources to protect them’."

@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow @ReclaimTS @DoughtyStPublic Ms Stevenson's legal team have written to the Met to challenge the legality of her arrest and treatment.

She said: "No matter what title the police have, no matter how great the power imbalance - you can fight them. If someone abuses their power, they must be held accountable."

@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow @ReclaimTS @DoughtyStPublic The Met Police were contacted for comment by @LondonWorldCom and declined to respond.

@PatsyeStevenson @GettyImages @metpoliceuk @jamieklingler @PippaWoodrow @ReclaimTS @DoughtyStPublic Read the full stories here via @LondonWorldCom.

#SarahEverard #WayneCouzens #PatsyStevenson #ClaphamCommon #MetPolice

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