Scotland: Court hears of lesbian couple attacked and called ‘dykes’ in street
A lesbian mother has told a court she and her girlfriend were subjected to homophobic abuse by a gang of teenagers in a street last year.
According to Renfrewshire’s Gazette, the incident took place on 31 July 2012 in the Renfrewshire town of Johnstone, which is close to Glasgow, as the couple were making their way to a branch of Morrisons.
Appearing at Paisley Sheriff Court last week, the mother said the teenagers used the word “dyke” and other anti-gay slurs.
The 28-year-old mother was also with her son at the time of the assault and said the teenagers called him a “beast”.
Gael Bowie, 40, and her son John, 22, from Johnstone, deny assaulting the woman’s partner by grabbing her by the neck, struggling violently with her, causing her to fall to the ground, repeatedly punching and kicking her on the head and body and hitting her over the head with a crutch.
Ms Bowie has also pleaded not guilty to acting in a threatening or abusive manner which was likely to cause a reasonable person to suffer fear or alarm by hurling homophobic abuse at the two women.
During the trial, the lesbian mother said a teenage girl – who is known to Gael Bowie and cannot be named for legal reasons – had been verbally abusing her about her sexuality for some time.
It’s claimed the altercation started after Bowie was informed of this information.
The trial has now been adjourned and the accused are next due in the dock in April.
