RSPCA – versus – Miss Mary Bale.

The above photograph shows Miss Bale being driven away by police for her own protection.
In the normal course of events, when a person is charged with a criminal offence, the prosecuting authority is the state. The state – in most democracies – is generally accountable to the people. Thus, there is public accountability of the prosecutors.
In that great democracy that is the USA, the prosecutors (District Attorneys) are directly elected.
Sadly, such is not the case in our benighted country. Yesterday the RSPCA announced that it was prosecuting Miss Mary Bale for, “….failing to provide the animal with a suitable environment and causing unnecessary suffering to a cat….” Miss Bale is due to appear before magistrates in Coventry on 19th October.
The British Gazette last reported upon this bizarre case of Miss Bale dropping Lola the cat in a wheelie bin on 25th August. Since that time police have had to station officers outside Miss Bale’s home as she has received threats against her life. The comments sections of the tabloid newspapers have comments from morons who suggest that Miss Bale is literally thrown to the lions, “…to see how she likes it…”
Comments such as these and inter-alia, the threats to Miss Bale’s life shows just how removed from commonsense many Britons’ thinking is.
The British Gazette does not condone Miss Bale’s actions but they are clearly not the actions of a normal person. This woman clearly has some personality issues that need to be resolved. Criminal prosecution of this woman is NOT the answer. Giving her a criminal record, causing the Royal Bank of Scotland to sack her will not achieve anything other than cause this woman more suffering – for be in no doubt – this woman will have been going through hell. The baying mob has seen to that.
There is however an inevitable predictability about what happens next:
Miss Bale will doubtless plead guilty before Coventry Magistrates on 19th October.
Her defending solicitor will make the following pleas in mitigation:
– that Miss Bale was of previous good character.
– that she has/had a trusted position in the RBS and has/now faces dismissal.
– that she has no previous criminal convictions.
– that she was under severe strain due to the illness of her father.
– that she is very remorseful over her actions.
The Magistrates will then impose their punishment. This will likely be:
– a community service order at the low end of the scale (possibly 30 hours)
– costs of over £1,000 payable to the prosecutor, the RSPCA
– a sum in compensation to the cat’s owner (possibly £100)
An unemployed Miss Bale will find obtaining new employment difficult. She will find that obtaining insurance for her home VERY expensive due to 1. her criminal conviction and 2. the nature of the conviction (death threats & c.)
The British Gazette is firmly of the opinion that such a situation shows that not only is Miss Bale unbalanced, so to is modern Britain.