Nightclub doorman 'told Travellers to go away and tarmac a driveway' - Dundee

From STV

A nightclub doorman has been cleared of telling members of the travelling community to "go away and tarmac a driveway".

Kris Scott allegedly made the comments towards a group of Travellers as they left a nightclub in Perth.

The 26-year-old was charged with acting in a racially aggravated manner by making offensive, abusive and racist comments to three women.

However, he was cleared of the charge after a sheriff ruled that because the alleged recipient of the abuse, a man with a group of Travellers in the town, had not been called to give evidence at Perth Sheriff Court on Thursday.

Sheriff Michael Fletcher said telling a Traveller to "tarmac a drive" could not be considered the same as referring to "a black person and bananas." He said he disagreed with the High Court's position but had no choice.

In light of the sheriff's guidance, fiscal depute Rebecca Kynaston said she was not seeking a conviction.

During evidence, student Kathleen Reid, 20, said: "We are Travellers. What makes you a Traveller is your culture, your heritage and the way you are raised. It's like a religion but it's a culture. A lot of people know if they see a Traveller. I don't know what it is, but you just know. We are all human beings, so I don't know what distinguishes us from other people.

"I'm very happy and proud to be a Traveller. We left the nightclub because there was a dispute. He said some stuff we were not happy about."

She told Perth Sheriff Court that Scott had become embroiled in a dispute with a male Traveller and had directed the offending comments at him.

Ms Reid added: "The first thing I heard was 'go and tarmac your drive'. I took that as an offensive term to Travellers. It's the same as saying to an Asian guy 'go back to your curry shop'.

"There was a lot of shouting - 'pikey' and 'Gypsy' and other things were being thrown around. That's an offensive word for a Traveller. When these things were said it kind of turned our heads. I was very shocked and very offended. It's not something you hear everyday. They were offensive to all the Travellers there."

Sheriff Fletcher said the case made him feel "uneasy" and he formally cleared Scott, of Brookfield House, in the Perthshire village of Blackford.