Manchester City fan, 40, who sexually assaulted a male Everton supporter is spared jail

A Manchester City fan who got drunk and groped an Everton fan during a Premiership football match has escaped jail despite urging a court to treat female sex offenders the same as men .

Jemma Whiteside, 40, assaulted the man shortly before kick-off in February, proclaiming: “I’m going to fuck him later and I don’t even know his name.”

The mother-of-six denied the allegations, saying she “wouldn’t even do this kind of thing to my boyfriend in public.” She also told investigators: “No offense to Liverpool, but a Scouse man is not something I want or need.”

Whitehouse was found guilty of sexual assault last month and faced jail time for the offence. Last week she was sentenced to a community order of nine months, 15 days of a rehabilitation activity and sentenced to pay a fine, costs and compensation to the victim.

The incident occurred on February 26 when Whiteside, from Worsley, Greater Manchester, was at Goodison Park to watch City beat Everton 1-0.

The victim, who is in his 40s, reported the incident to police, saying he was “shocked” that he had fondled an “intimate area” of her body.

PC Mark McGinty, who arrested Whiteside in the stands, told the court that she was “very drunk” as evidenced by her behavior at the match.

“He was moving his arms erratically, leaning over the barrier and trying to grab people below, yelling at them and yelling out onto the field,” McGinty explained.

“Her speech was very slurred, she was wobbly on her feet and her eyes were glassy. She had the impression that she was very drunk.

The court heard that the officer had recorded in his statement that Whiteside had been heard to say that he “liked Scouse’s men”.

Later, when Whiteside was asked about the incident, she replied: “As a die-hard City fan, that’s not something I can say.”

I wouldn’t even do this kind of thing to my boyfriend in public. Ask any Man City fan and they will completely agree. That’s not something I would do.

‘He has taken offense at me, he doesn’t like me. I am a respectable mother and a respectable City fan. I would not behave in a way that would make me less able to see Man City.

Whitehouse told the audience: “If you were walking, you may have brushed against it. It was a football game, it was a crowded place, it’s easy to pass, brush up against someone.

She also continued to deny saying she was going to ‘f*** him later’ and added.

‘I’ve never said anything like that in my life. I am the mother of six children. When I’m not taking care of my children, football is the only thing I do.’

The victim, who was “shocked and upset” by the fondling, had argued in a statement: “It shouldn’t matter if the assault was from a man or a woman, it should be treated in the same way.”

Whiteside, whose son is in the final year of a scholarship at a Premiership club and whose daughter is on trials at Liverpool FC, faced jail time after she was found guilty of sexual assault last month.

But she was sentenced last week to a nine-month community order and must also do 15 days of rehabilitation activity.

In addition, he was fined £200 with costs of £295 and ordered to pay the victim £400 in compensation after a judge said that “in drink people can and often do do things that are very out of place”.

Convicting her of sexual assault, U.S. District Judge James Clarke said the victim felt “a rather unusual and unexpected type of contact” and argued that her complaint was “not something that could be misconstrued or confused.”

‘Clearly the words: “I’ll have him later and I don’t even know his name” is a curious thing for the victim to misinterpret or make up if that’s what it’s suggested he did.

‘In drinking, people can, and often do, things that are very out of character. I’m sure the lady had been drinking during the course of the afternoon.

“She was a very good-tempered lady who was rushed around by her friends and took the last few gulps of alcohol in the process.”

The judge added: ‘The complainant gave a credible account in my assessment. It was not something that could be misinterpreted or confused. I’m not convinced it’s something he made up.

“The defendant was a prankster, and this is a prank gone very wrong while being committed while intoxicated and perhaps bragging to friends on occasion.”

After the case, Chief Crown Prosecutor Mike O’Kane of CPS Mersey Cheshire said: “This man was subjected to an unprovoked and completely unexpected sexual assault by Ms Whiteside.”

“The incident caused discomfort and embarrassment to the victim. In addition, he noted in his personal victim statement, which was read out at the sentencing hearing, that “it shouldn’t matter if the assault was on a man or a woman, it should be treated the same.”

The Crown Prosecution Service would echo that. Men are victims of sexual assault and are entitled to the protection of the law.

‘CPS works hard to apply the law fairly, regardless of the gender of the suspect or victim, and to ensure that crimes like this are vigorously prosecuted.

“The victim in this matter was forced to attend the trial and testify because Ms. Whiteside refused to accept her guilt.”