WOMAN ‘URINATED ON SOMME WAR MEMORIAL’
In front of families, court told
A DRUNKEN woman twice urinated on a war memorial in broad daylight in front of shocked families, a court heard.
One of the wee alleged incidents happened on the eve of the centenary of the Battle of the Somme, it is alleged.
Basildon Magistrates’ Court was told Kelly Martin, 42, pulled down her trousers and relieved herself on June 30 at the remembrance monument in Grays, Essex. The following day was the 100th anniversary of the start of the Somme offensive, which began on July 1 1916 and cost hundreds of thousands of lives.
Martin was on bail at the time, having been arrested for urinating at the structure in April, when there were still Remembrance poppy wreaths on it.
On both occasions she was among a crowd of people around the memorial when she dropped her trousers and relieved herself, her trial heard.
Pc James Shelton, of Essex Police, who arrested her after the alleged April 13 incident, told the court he was “shocked” by what he saw taking place in front of 15-20 people.
He told the court: “For me, the war memorial is something that we need to remember in terms of people who gave their lives for us.
Offensive
“We hold them in our hearts. I was so disgusted that someone could be so deliberately offensive towards it.
“I looked around in disbelief. In particular I saw a mother that had a child in a pushchair.
“She was trying to shield her child’s eyes from what was happening.”
Homeless Martin is also accused of throwing a bottle at, and verbally abusing, a paramedic at the memorial on June 30.
She denies two charges of outraging public decency, one of common assault and one of using threatening or abusive language.
The case continues.