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18
Apr
Dacre man sentenced after racially harassing siblings watching Northern Lights
A Dacre man has been sentenced after racially harassing four siblings as they were watching the Northern Lights.
Keith Moorhouse, 36, pleaded guilty to four counts of racially or religiously aggravated intentional harassment, alarm or distress during a hearing at Harrogate Magistrates Court in January.
On Thursday (April 16), the 36-year-old appeared before the same court for sentencing.
Sarah Tyrer, prosecuting, told the court the four named victims are siblings and live in the Bradford area.
On the evening of May 10, 2024, the siblings travelled to Dike Lane near Heyshaw, Nidderdale, to see the Northern Lights – something they had done several times before.
They were near a junction but stopped on a quiet country road.
In a statement, one of the siblings, who the Stray Ferret is referring to as M, said there is a “turning circle” area just off Dike Lane, where cars often park.
Six other people had already parked there by the time the siblings arrived, and they assumed they were also there to spot the lights.
Ms Tyrer said by around 12.30am, one of the siblings, N, was sitting on the ground. She was looking at the Northern Lights when a Land Rover Discovery stopped on the road next to her.
M noticed two white men in the front seats of the car speaking to his sister, so he went over to check N was alright.
“He could hear the defendant, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, asking [N] why she was sitting on the floor”, Ms Tyrer told the court.
She added:
[N] said she was minding her own business, but the defendant said it was their land.
[M] said he was worried about how the defendant was speaking to his sister.
N told Moorhouse she was on a public road, but the defendant started “pointing and shouting, saying it was ‘his land’”.
The siblings tried to calm the situation down, but Moorhouse told them he wanted them “off the land”.
The incident occurred around Dike Lane, near Heyshaw.
The defendant then got out of the car and verbally abused the siblings, using racial slurs.
As M walked towards his sister, Moorhouse approached M and asked: “What are you going to do?”.
“He was picking a fight”, Ms Tyrer said, adding he even pushed M backwards at one stage.
Moorhouse, of Fouldshaw Lane, then called the siblings a “scruffy mess” and continued to racially abuse them.
Other people in the area heard “racist language being used”, the court heard.
The four siblings, as well as two independent witnesses, all gave statements to police.
When Moorhouse was interviewed by police, he told officers he could not recall exactly what he had said at the time due to “time passing”.
However, Ms Tyrer said the defendant “seems to accept it”.
Moorhouse, who is of previous good character, said he had been out drinking in Pateley Bridge that evening.
Ms Tyrer told the court that despite there being other people in the area, it appeared “Moorhouse chose to single out this Asian family”.
She added that the offences were a “direct attack” on their race.
‘He has not tried to diminish his role’
Brian Nuttney, defending, said Moorhouse had pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and had apologised for the distress caused.
Mr Nuttney told the court that the offences were nearly two years old and the 36-year-old had spent that time with them “hanging over his head”.
He said:
There is no reason why I can see that this matter has taken so long.
Mr Nuttney said that while Moorhouse could not recollect what happened on the night, he had not tried to “diminish his role” in the incident.
He said:
He accepts it [his role]. He said that he knows that he was out of order on that day. He apologises for his behaviour and the distress he caused. He loses his good name today.
Mr Nuttney also pointed to a pre-sentence report, which said the probation service “did not detect any racist views” in Moorhouse.
Magistrates sentenced Moorhouse to a 12-month community order, which included 15 rehabilitation activity days.
He was also fined £576 and ordered to pay a £230 victims’ surcharge and £85 in court costs.
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