A Brief Note On Baig V Harvie

Baig v Harvie 2016 SLT 67; 2016 SCL 108

On January the 31st 2014 the appellant in this case – Baig, accompanied by his brother, had confrontation with two parking attendants after they had issued a penalty charge notice on the appellant’s car. This was issued as the car was parked in a restricted parking section and the appropriate parking permit was not displayed.
‘The appellant and his brother returned to confront Mr Brown. The appellant was verbally abusive. He was confrontational. He was aggressive. His behaviour was threatening and abusive.’ Baig had acted in a manner that the parking attendants seen as aggressive, also threw the penalty charge onto the ground. Foul language was exchanged in the confrontation and Baig began to follow the parking attendants around the carpark, when they attempted to leave. He was aggressive and his behaviour towards the attendants was seen to be threating.
This encounter had been videoed and was recorded by a body camera that at the time had been worn by one of the parking attendants.
The appellant was subject to two charges; a
Breach of the peace is ‘Conduct severe enough to cause alarm to ordinary people and threaten serious disturbance to the community’. For an offence to be breach of the peace there has to be a public element, whereas for there to be a breach of s38 of the 2010 act it focuses on offences committed in private. An issue that could be brought up with this case could be that as the confrontation happened in public why was it not seen as a breach of the peace. Though as there was no public disturbance to others around as they were alone, it was seen as a breach of s38. Furthermore, as the two parking attendants are working members of the community couldn’t this be enough for it to be brought forward as a breach of the