I hope that they throw the book at her anyway.
She doesn’t have to testify in her own defence, but allowing her to cover her face during the trial should never have been allowed by the court judge.
Muslim woman on trial who was ordered to remove her veil to speak in her defence refuses to take to the witness stand
Rebekah Dawson arriving at Blackfriars Crown Court in Central London for her trial last week
- Judge Peter Murphy made the landmark ruling that 22-year-old Rebekah Dawson must remove her niqab when giving evidence
- Her barrister told the jury she would not give evidence in her own defence
- Dawson, of east London, is on trial alongside her brother, Matthias Dawson
- Both defendants deny a single charge of witness intimidation
By TARA BRADY
PUBLISHED: 17:21 GMT, 27 January 2014 | UPDATED: 01:43 GMT, 28 January 2014
A Muslim woman who was allowed to wear a full-face veil in court will not have to remove it after she chose not to give evidence yesterday.
Rebekah Dawson, 22, has so far been allowed to appear at her trial for alleged witness intimidation in a niqab showing just her eyes.
Judge Peter Murphy ruled last September that she could wear the Islamic garment in court, but insisted that she would have to let the jury see her face if she chose to give evidence.
Her barrister, Susan Meek, confirmed yesterday at Blackfriars Crown Court that Miss Dawson would not be giving evidence in her own defence – despite being aware that the jury would ‘draw such inferences as might be proper’ from her decision.
Dawson, of Hackney, east London, is on trial alongside her brother, Matthias Dawson, 32, accused of intimidating a security guard at the Finsbury Park mosque in north London last June.
It is alleged they approached Daudi Yusuf at the mosque after an incident between him and Ms Dawson’s husband.
Both defendants deny a single charge of witness intimidation.
