Photographer wins second appeal over public order conviction

A PRESS photographer arrested at the scene of an incident and convicted of a public order offence has had his conviction quashed.

- JASON EVANS

Dimitris Legakis appealed against his conviction and just half an hour before the matter was due to be heard the prosecution said it had reviewed the evidence in the case and would not seek to oppose the appeal.

It is the second time in 18 months that Mr Legakis has been prosecuted only for the case to be abandoned at the door of the court after a review of the evidence against him.

In April last year the Crown Prosecution Service offered no evidence against the photographer and dropped the case a day before he was due to stand trial before a Crown Court jury in a case which a judge said was “disturbing” and which “raised serious questions”.

Mr Legakis’ barrister at his appeal hearing said his client had essentially been prosecuted for “upsetting a police officer” and said what happened was an infringement of his right to freedom of expression.

He said: “It’s about time police realised that it is not a criminal offence to be insulting or disrespectful or rude or intemperate”.

The freelance photographer who runs the Athena Picture Agency was arrested over words he used to a police officer and a firefighter while covering a fire at Day's Motorpark in Gorseinon in August last year.

He was subsequently convicted at trial at Swansea Magistrates’ Court of a Section 5 public order offence that is of using threatening or abusive words or behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress.

He was fined £158 and was ordered to pay £650 in prosecution costs.

Mr Legakis launched an appeal against that December conviction.