HERO'S GIRL GUILTY OF WAR MEMORIAL ATTACK

The daughter of a World War II pilot who confronted youths she thought were vandalising a war memorial has been convicted of assaulting them.

Julie Lake, 50, tackled the 15-year-old ringleader of the hooded group after catching him riding his BMX through freshly laid flower beds.

She grabbed his shirt collar, to which he laughed: “That's assault”, magistrates in Yate, near Bristol, heard.

Lake thought she was performing a “moral obligation” after months of anti-social behaviour and vandalism at the World War II memorial.

But weeks later she was arrested and yesterday was convicted of assault, criminal damage and a public order offence at North Avon Magistrates' Court.

She was cleared of punching a 14-year-old in the stomach during the fracas.

Sentencing Lake to a 12month conditional discharge, district judge David Parsons said she had shown a “complete lack of self-control”.

She was found guilty of criminal damage for angrily throwing one of the youth's bikes into the road, and shouting: “Now you know what it feels like to have your property damaged”.

The judge rejected her claim the she was trying to perform a citizen's arrest and handed her a 12-month conditional discharge and £400 costs. He said: “I'm sure that having seen the damage to the flower beds, you simply lost your temper.

“I can understand you lost it, particularly because of your family relations in the war, and it is hardly surprising that you did.

“You reacted spontaneously, without thought for the consequences.

“You confronted the child with no plan in mind. The throwing of a bike into the road shows a complete loss of self-control, not the actions of someone executing a citizen's arrest.”

Mrs Lake's grandfather, James Byrne, was an infantryman killed, aged 29, in the Western Front trenches of France during World War I.

Her father William Byrne was an RAF pilot in World War II, and Julie's husband Peter, 63, a retired airman, also lost his grandfather in the 1914 to 18 war.

The trial – which is estimated to have cost taxpayers more than £100,000 – earlier heard how Lake was surrounded by up to 25 jeering youths by the memorial in Mangotsfield, Bristol, on December 11 last year.

When the 15-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was questioned in court about the war memorial, he replied: “It means nothing to me, I guess it's for some people who died in the war.”

Lake said after the hearing: “I did this for millions of men and women like my grandfather, for whom a war memorial is the only grave they have. I did what I did because I believe it was my moral obligation to stand up for those men and women following years of vandalism at the memorial.

“I would like to say thanks for all the support I've received from across the UK over the past few months which has meant so much to me. I hope my experience will galvanise the authorities into taking action against the people committing crimes.”

Members of the Royal British Legion were in court to support Lake during the four-day trial, and branded her a “hero”.

Former serviceman Reg Hall, 78, said: “It's disgusting that the vandalism has been going on at the memorial for eight years and nobody has stopped it.

“Julie is a hero for trying to take a stand. She has suffered months of abuse and health problems in the last eight months, and we are all proud of her.”

The mother of one of the children who was assaulted by Lake has spoken out following the case. In a statement she said: “I am absolutely disgusted that the good character of our 15-year-old son and his friends have been brought into question during an incident in which they were the victims.

“Reports suggesting that the children were 'thugs' and misbehaving are far from the truth. In fact the children have never been in trouble with the police, are not responsible for anti-social behaviour and, more importantly, did not cause damage to the war memorial. Mrs Lake's actions have in fact tarnished a group of well-behaved young people and labelled them with the image of being nothing better than yobs.

“Our son, who has long lost relatives who fought during the war, is fully aware of the significance of the war memorial.

“While I appreciate the Royal British Legion are keen to mark the importance of the memorial, I find it surprising that they have chosen to support Mrs Lake throughout this incident despite the fact she assaulted two children who had done nothing wrong.

I hope that the outcome of the court case will show that contrary to rumour and speculation these children were victims and Mrs Lake was the criminal who used disgraceful language wrongly accusing them of actions they were not responsible for.

“This whole incident has been extremely upsetting for us and the families involved and we want to now put it behind us and move on.”

Celebrity lawyer Nick Freeman, dubbed Mr Loophole, defended Lake for free after a massive public outcry when she was arrested after the incident. He branded her arrest and trial: “Political correctness gone mad.”

Speaking outside court, he said: “The authorities have been inundated with complaints from local residents and it is perverse and ironic that the only person arrested, charged and convicted is the one person who has tended the memorial over this period.

“This is consistent with a small minority of youths who are lawless and have no respect for others, for authority or for property. I don't feel that common sense has prevailed and that the protagonists who are responsible for the damage have yet to be questioned about their conduct. I don't believe the interests of justice have been properly served. This was an extremely unfortunate prosecution.”