Woman made racial remark to fellow bus passenger

Other passengers said and did nothing as Danielle Green, 35, of Le Bourg, Forest, mocked the woman as she got on board.

The victim said she had ended up in hospital as a consequence of the incident.

Judge Gary Perry said that a fine would be insufficient, and so sentenced Green to 60 hours of community service, and to pay £650 in compensation to the other woman.

In the Magistrate’s Court she admitted a charge of behaving in a disorderly manner.

Judge Perry said that society had moved on in recent years and such stereotypical racist comments undermined the good work that had been done.

The court heard how Green had been heavily intoxicated after attending a school reunion when she boarded the bus at Cobo with a friend just after 6pm. At L’Ancresse, a black woman boarded the bus and asked the driver if it was going to Town.

Green, who was sitting behind the driver, made a racial comment towards the woman three times before clapping her hands and laughing. She repeated the comment as the complainant walked to the back of the bus.

Green got off the bus near the Bridge. When the complainant got off soon afterwards she was followed by two other passengers who told her they were upset by what they had just seen. The woman reported the incident to police the following day and a media release was issued appealing for information.

Green handed herself in at the Police Station. She said she had been very intoxicated – she had ‘never been that drunk before’ – and could not recall getting on the bus.

She became emotional and apologised profusely for what had happened and asked if she could write an apology to the woman.

Crown Advocate Fiona Russell read excerpts from two victim impact statements which the complainant had provided.

The woman said she used to struggle with anxiety which she had managed to get under control since moving to Guernsey, where she had felt good. This incident had put her back and she was now anxious about getting on a bus or walking down a street.

The defendant’s letter had, if anything, made her feel worse, and the fact that nobody on the bus had said anything at the time had changed her perception about the island.

She had been hospitalised since the incident, for reasons which she said were connected, and had to pay bills of about £400.

Defending, Advocate Samuel Steel said his client wished to apologise for her inexcusable behaviour. It was 10 seconds of her life that she regretted enormously. Whether sober or drunk, such comments could not be tolerated in Guernsey.

She struggled to know why she had made such provocative remarks when she had never done so before. She had been a senior carer for a diverse cross-section of the community, regardless of creed or colour, and was not a racist.

She was of previous good character and this had been ‘an extraordinary fall from grace’, Advocate Steel said. She knew the reputational damage would be ‘huge’, she had been a carer for 11 years, but had now found a new job. Not a big drinker, she had now changed her drinking habits.

Judge Perry said the defendant got credit for her early guilty plea, her previous good character, and the fact that she had handed herself in to police. But that had not helped the victim, who she did not know.

Her comments had had a substantial effect on someone, and imposing a fine would not be sufficient in this case. The judge awarded compensation, but admitted it was difficult, as some people might be offended by being given money in such circumstances.