Woman sentenced for hate incident at city protest

The demonstrations in Nottingham saw chanting from some far-right and anti-fascist protesters

A woman who pushed a police officer and spat on another at a protest in Nottingham city centre has been sentenced.

Hundreds of people gathered near the Brian Clough Statue in King Street as part of demonstrations organised by rival groups on Saturday.

The demonstrations, which saw chanting from some far-right and anti-fascist protesters, were among a number to take place across the UK.

Victoria Gray - one of eight individuals charged after the Nottingham protest - was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for 12 months, at Nottingham Magistrates' Court on Monday.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said Gray was detained after pushing an officer policing the protest in Long Row.

After she was detained, she shouted a series of offensive racist and homophobic comments and went on to spit on one of the officers arresting her, the CPS added.

Gray was charged on Sunday and appeared in court on Monday, when she faced a charge of possession of a weapon for taking a can of pepper spray to the scene.

Officers detained a number of people during the protests

The 42-year-old, of High Lane East, West Hallam, Derbyshire, admitted all charges.

In addition to being ordered to attend 15 days of rehabilitation activity, she was fined £200 for religious aggravated harassment, alarm or distress - an increase from £100 as it was identified as a hate crime.

She was also told to pay £231 in compensation to a victim for one count of assaulting an emergency worker.

Nottinghamshire Police said the demonstrations in Nottingham remained "largely peaceful", and warned any other disorder would see a "robust response".

Janine McKinney, of CPS East Midlands, added: "We ensured this offender appeared before the court straight away. She will now live with the consequences of her actions for the rest of her life."

The charges

• Gray was sentenced to four and three months respectively, suspended for a year, for two counts of assaulting an emergency worker. The three-month sentence will run concurrently to the four-month term

• She was sentenced to two months in prison, suspended for a year, for possession of a weapon designed for the discharge of noxious liquid or gas or electrical incapacitation, and handed an order for the deprivation of the defendant's right to use pepper spray. The sentence will run consecutively to the four-month term

• Gray was given three months in prison, suspended for a year, for using threatening or abusive or insulting behaviour to cause harassment, alarm or distress. This sentence was ordered to run concurrently

• Two other charges - using threatening words or behaviour intending to steer religious or sexual orientation hatred, and using threatening words or behaviour to cause harassment or alarm - were withdrawn