Rastafarian seeks apology over hat dispute in court

A Rastafarian was escorted from court twice yesterday for demanding an apology from a judge who had earlier ordered his arrest for refusing to remove his woolly hat in the public gallery.

Terence Lynch, 43, dismissed as "nonsense" a public statement from Judge Robert Orme expressing his regret over the incident, and said he would keep turning up at Birmingham Crown Court until he received an apology.

Mr Lynch was held in the cells for two hours on Tuesday after refusing to remove his hat, worn for religious purposes, while watching the trial of a friend. He was released without charge.

In a statement before the start of business at the court yesterday, the judge said: "If what occurred has been misunderstood or interpreted as disparaging Rastafarianism or Rastafari, that is a matter that I very much regret and, I wish to make clear, was not my intention." Mr Lynch, from Birmingham, was not in court for the statement but arrived 20 minutes later. When he learnt of what the judge said, he said: "This is nonsense. He should be apologising to me."