Australia soccer star Sam Kerr found not guilty of racially aggravated harassment of police officer

Sam Kerr, one of the world’s top female soccer players, was found not guilty Tuesday of racially aggravated harassment of a police officer.

Kerr, a striker for Australia and for English club Chelsea, accepted she called Police Constable Stephen Lovell “stupid and white” during a heated exchange at a police station after a night out in London in January 2023, but had denied that it amounted to the charge.

The verdict came after more than four hours of deliberations by a 12-person jury and on the seventh day of the trial at Kingston Crown Court in London.

“Following today’s not guilty verdict, I can finally put this challenging period behind me,” Kerr said in a statement posted on Instagram. “While I apologize for expressing myself poorly on what was a traumatic evening, I have always maintained that I did not intend to insult or harm anyone and I am thankful that the jury unanimously agreed.”

It is alleged Kerr and her fiancée, Kristie Mewis, a U.S. soccer player contracted to English team West Ham, had been out drinking when they were driven to the police station by a taxi driver, who complained that they refused to pay clean-up costs after one of them was sick, and that one of them smashed the vehicle’s rear window.

Kerr, who said she feared for her life as she felt “trapped” during the taxi ride, is alleged to have become abusive and insulting toward Lovell at the police station and used expletives while calling him “stupid and white.” During cross-examination in court, Kerr said she regretted the way she expressed herself and denied that calling Lovell “white” was used as an insult.

Kerr, who identifies as a white Anglo-Indian, said: “I believed it was him using his power and privilege over me because he was accusing me of being something I’m not ... I was trying to express that due to the power and privilege they (the police) had, they would never have to understand what we had just gone through, and the fear we were having for our lives.”

After the jury reached its verdict, Judge Peter Lodder said of Kerr: “I take the view her own behavior contributed significantly to the bringing of this allegation. I don’t go behind the jury’s verdict but that has a significant bearing on the question of costs.”

Kerr’s trial has been headline news in Australia, with each day in court thoroughly dissected by the domestic media.

Debate over the charge has ranged from the validity of the allegation, to Kerr’s conduct while being interviewed by police.

Her position as captain of the Matildas, the much-loved national women’s soccer team, has been called into question by critics. Kerr is the captain and all-time leading scorer for Australia, with 69 goals since her debut in 2009.

Football Australia said it welcomed Kerr's statement and that it will speak with her about the incident.

“Football Australia invests heavily in building the behavioral standards and expectations of all involved with our game, especially for all our national team players, where leadership comes with added responsibilities on and off the field,” a Football Australia statement said. "(We) will reflect with Sam on learnings from this matter and we will continue to provide appropriate support for her moving forward."

The statement Wednesday also said that Football Australia "recognize the significant pressures that this matter has brought to Sam, Kristie, her family, and everyone involved, including the impact it’s had on the game.

“Throughout this period, Football Australia has remained committed to supporting Sam and will continue to do so as she focuses on her footballing career, rehabilitation from injury and return to play.”

Kerr joined Chelsea in 2019 and has scored 99 goals in 128 games for the London club, which is the defending English champion and a top contender for the Women’s Champions League title.

She hasn’t played since sustaining an ACL injury during a warm-weather training camp with Chelsea in Morocco in January 2024.

Kerr is expected to return in the coming weeks, in time to play for Australia in a pair of international friendlies against South Korea in April in the lead-up to the 2026 AFC Asian Cup.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Chelsea and Australia soccer player Samantha Kerr, right, departs Kingston Crown Court, in south west London, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, where she is was found not guilty on charges of alleged racially aggravated harassment of a police officer. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Chelsea and Australia soccer player Samantha Kerr, right, departs Kingston Crown Court, in south west London, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, where she is was found not guilty on charges of alleged racially aggravated harassment of a police officer. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Chelsea and Australia soccer player Samantha Kerr, right, departs Kingston Crown Court, in south west London, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, where she is was found not guilty on charges of alleged racially aggravated harassment of a police officer. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Chelsea and Australia soccer player Samantha Kerr arrives at Kingston Crown Court, in south west London, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, where she is charged with alleged racially aggravated harassment of a police officer. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Chelsea and Australia soccer player Samantha Kerr arrives at Kingston Crown Court, in south west London, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, where she is charged with alleged racially aggravated harassment of a police officer. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Chelsea and Australia soccer player Samantha Kerr arrives at Kingston Crown Court, in south west London, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, where she is charged with alleged racially aggravated harassment of a police officer. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

ISTANBUL (AP) — The head of Turkey's main opposition party visited jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu on Tuesday after six nights of massive protests calling for his release.

Imamoglu, arrested on March 19 on corruption charges, is seen as the main challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s 22-year rule. His arrest has been widely viewed as politically motivated and sparked demonstrations, some turning violent, across the country. The government insists Turkey’s judiciary is independent and free of political influence.

Ozgur Ozel, the leader of Imamoglu's Republican People’s Party, or CHP, held a two-hour meeting with Imamoglu at Silivri prison, west of Istanbul. Ozel told reporters that he was “ashamed on behalf of those who govern Turkey of the atmosphere I am in and the situation that Turkey is being put through.”

He described Imamoglu and two jailed CHP district mayors he also met as “three lions inside, standing tall, with their heads held high … proud of themselves, their families, their colleagues, not afraid.”

Ozel announced the night before that Tuesday evening would be CHP's final rally outside Istanbul’s City Hall, calling for people to join in. He also said the party would appoint a member to the municipal council to act as mayor in Imamoglu's place, staving off the possibility of a state-appointed replacement.

Students across Turkey protested and occupied campuses on Tuesday after declaring a boycott of classes. In Istanbul, thousands gathered in a park before marching to Sisli district, where the elected mayor has been jailed and replaced with a government appointee.

Meanwhile, Turkish authorities have been cracking down on journalists as protests have grown.

The Media and Law Studies Association, a civil society group, said 11 journalists who were detained for covering banned protests in Istanbul were brought to the city’s Caglayan Courthouse to answer charges of violating the law on meetings and demonstrations.

The journalists were among more than 200 people prosecutors have recommended for imprisonment pending trial, including left-wing activists rounded up at their homes in raids early on Monday.

Media workers’ unions have condemned the arrests as an “attack on press freedoms and the people’s right to learn the truth.”

The head of the CHP's Istanbul branch, Ozgur Celik, shared a letter he had received from the prosecutor’s office ordering the removal of Imamoglu's posters. He said he would not comply.

“You will see more of Mayor Ekrem on the balconies of houses, in squares, on the streets and on the walls,” Celik posted on X.

Demonstrations in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir, as well as smaller cities and towns across Turkey, have been largely peaceful with protesters demanding Imamoglu’s release and an end to democratic backsliding. Some turned violent, with officers deploying water cannons, tear gas and pepper spray and firing plastic pellets at protesters, some of whom have hurled stones, fireworks and other objects at riot police.

The governors of Ankara and Izmir on Tuesday extended bans on demonstrations to April 1 and March 29, respectively. The ban in Istanbul currently ends on Thursday.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said early Tuesday that police had detained 43 “provocateurs” over what he said were “vile insults” hurled at Erdogan and his family at protests. Later he posted that 1,418 people had been detained since Wednesday last week, and 979 suspects were currently in custody. “No concessions will be made to those who attempt to terrorize the streets,” he wrote on X.

Ozel and Imamoglu's social media accounts posted condemnations of insults hurled at Erdogan's mother.

Imamoglu has been jailed on suspicion of running a criminal organization, accepting bribes, extortion, illegally recording personal data and bid-rigging — accusations he has denied. He also faces prosecution on terror-related charges and has been suspended from duty as a “temporary measure.”

Alongside Imamoglu, 47 other people have been jailed pending trial, including a key aide and two district mayors from Istanbul. A further 44 suspects in the case alleging widespread graft at Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality were released under judicial control.

The U.N. Human Rights Office condemned “widespread detentions” in Turkey. “All those detained for the legitimate exercise of their rights must be released immediately and unconditionally,” spokesperson Liz Throssell said in a statement.

Although Turkey is not due for another election until 2028, there is a reasonable possibility that Erdogan will call for an early vote in order to run for another term.

Imamoglu has been confirmed as the candidate for the CHP and has performed well in recent polls against Erdogan. He was elected mayor of Turkey’s largest city in March 2019, in a major blow to Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party, which had controlled Istanbul alongside its predecessors for a quarter-century.

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Associated Press writer Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.

University students sit next to anti riot police officers during a protest after Istanbul's Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was arrested and sent to prison, in Istanbul, Turkey, Monday, March 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Huseyin Aldemir)

Riot police fire tear gas pellets to disperse protesters in Istanbul, Turkey, Monday, March 24, 2025, during a protest after Istanbul's Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was arrested and sent to prison. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

People shout slogans next to anti riot police officers during a protest after Istanbul's Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was arrested and sent to prison, in Istanbul, Turkey, Monday, March 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)