British Couple's Thailand Dream Becomes Legal Nightmare

[tropo]

5 hours ago, smedly said:

stories like this come down to one thing IMO

 

money

 

Why is this elderly couple still in Thailand, they need to get out now

Obviously (I thought) because they are on bail which includes confiscation of their passports.

[JJ-Thailand]

1 minute ago, rough diamond said:

An extremely helpful post,

Maybe you could expand and help others by say what is much better.

 

 

Different kind of visitors, less stress, less greed, less violence, more smiles and more happiness.

I'm talking about the 80s and 90s.

[tropo]

5 hours ago, baabaaloo said:

The russians get into trouble all the time all over Thailand and get away with it, better seek retirement in Vietnam or Philippines, much safer and affordable.

The Philippines is much safer? You can't be serious? There's no comparison. Thailand is like a padded cell in contrast to the Philippines. Disputes such as this one might have ended up with both dead, in the Philippines. Be very careful who you raise your voice to in the Philippines. A big difference is they don't often shout back, but quietly take care of business. It's a jungle compared to Thailand. I can't comment on Vietnam.

[tropo]

5 hours ago, WDSmart said:

It would be interesting to hear the other side of this story...

Are you suggesting that maybe the elderly man deserved to be knocked unconscious and sustain about 22 additional punches to the head while on the ground?... and his wife being attacked?

 

[Cameroni]

18 minutes ago, tropo said:

The Thai police and justice system is about as fair as your lawyer is good.

Same as every other country in the world. 

 

Don't see how this makes Thailand different.

[tropo]

Just now, Cameroni said:

Same as every other country in the world. 

 

Don't see how this makes Thailand different.

No, it's not. My home country, Australia has trial by jury for serious assault cases, which this is.

 

In the UK, too

 

In the UK, more serious assault cases, those deemed "indictable offences," are tried in the Crown Court with a jury, while less serious cases, or "summary offences," are typically heard in Magistrates' Courts without a jury. 

 

Here's a brief overview of the court system in Thailand:

 

Thailand does not have a jury system; instead, judges or a panel of judges decide the guilt or innocence of a defendant, as well as determine the sentence. 

 

No Jury System:

In Thailand, the legal system operates with judges, not juries, making decisions based on the evidence presented by both the prosecution and defence. 

 

Judges Solely Decide:

The judge or panel of judges is responsible for determining guilt or innocence and, if guilty, for imposing the appropriate sentence. 

 

Departure from Western Systems:

This differs significantly from the jury trial process common in some Western legal systems, where a group of citizens decides the facts of the case. 

 

Advocacy System:

In Thailand, courtroom proceedings are conducted in an adversarial system, whereby the two opposing advocates represent their clients' cases before one or more judges. 

[Cameroni]

5 minutes ago, tropo said:

No, it's not. My home country, Australia has trial by jury for serious assault cases, which this is.

 

In the UK, too

 

In the UK, more serious assault cases, those deemed "indictable offences," are tried in the Crown Court with a jury, while less serious cases, or "summary offences," are typically heard in Magistrates' Courts without a jury. 

 

Here's a brief overview of the court system in Thailand:

 

Thailand does not have a jury system; instead, judges or a panel of judges decide the guilt or innocence of a defendant, as well as determine the sentence. 

 

No Jury System:

In Thailand, the legal system operates with judges, not juries, making decisions based on the evidence presented by both the prosecution and defence. 

 

Judges Solely Decide:

The judge or panel of judges is responsible for determining guilt or innocence and, if guilty, for imposing the appropriate sentence. 

 

Departure from Western Systems:

This differs significantly from the jury trial process common in some Western legal systems, where a group of citizens decides the facts of the case. 

 

Advocacy System:

In Thailand, courtroom proceedings are conducted in an adversarial system, whereby the two opposing advocates represent their clients' cases before one or more judges. 

 

I am a UK qualified lawyer and very familiar with the UK legal system. However, trial by jury is a pecularity you seem to be hung up on for some reason. Neither Germany nor Netherlands nor India have a jury trial. Why is this pecularity of any relevance?

 

Obviously I was not referring to Thailand having a jury system but to the fact that lawyers will help you get a fairer treatment. That is the case in every country.

[newbee2022]

 

 

7 hours ago, hotsun said:

Their government gave their country away

To whom? 

I didn't get an offer😳

[newbee2022]

A bit uncontrolled this Brit, obviously supplied with a short fuse unfortunately.

😳

[4MyEgo]

8 hours ago, MalcolmB said:

Brit probably got a bit lippy with the Thais.

And got a fat lip. 
It amazes me how some farangs, and especially us Brits, think they can talk down and yell at the locals without any consequences.

 

Regardless if he got lippy or not, you don't hit the elderly, unless your a savage, and there I will leave it.

 

The Thai's could have walked away from the situation, as could the have the UK couple and sorted it through the Owners Corporation as I believe it was a villa, and if the law here regarding property in a strata is similar to back home, there would be a plan outlining who owns what.

 

In my opinion, this just goes to show, some Thai's, especially the younger ones, think they can hit elderly people without having regard to the outcome, if it were me, I would be counter suing for damages, on top of the assalt charges.

[MalcolmB]

1 hour ago, georgegeorgia said:

The guy from Buzzin Lounge does it 

Buzzin lounge has ladies of the night.

Pimps are not known for politeness.

[Ralf001]

4 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

 

Regardless if he got lippy or not, you don't hit the elderly,

 

Elderly should not run their mouth.... Brittles wil never learn.

[4MyEgo]

2 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

 

Elderly should not run their mouth.... Brittles wil never learn.

 

They are just words, hot air, and I would bet my left one that if the guy was built like a brick sh-t house wall covered in tatts, the Thai would have thought twice about picking on a 77 year old, seriously.

 

I had an old guy cut in front of me a while back on a Friday night back in the home country, I beeped my horn and he kept brake checking me, until we came to the red lights, when I pounced out of the car, ran up to his window and ready to start throwing em, he wound his window down and spat at me saying F off, I swear, I could have knocked him out and done some serious damage, because I was so enraged, but I managed to calm down, walk back to my car and laugh in pity for the guy.

[rough diamond]

29 minutes ago, Cameroni said:

lawyers will help you get a fairer treatment. That is the case in every country.

Depending on the size of the brown envelope/influence/politics etc. in ALL countries.

[Dan747]

I would like to know more about the "DISPUTE?" 

[hotsun]

5 hours ago, Smithy276 said:

This statement would be funny if it wasn’t true. And the nobody has been able to explain why they did it

White guilt

[Ctkong]

4 hours ago, StayinThailand2much said:

 

Spot on. I once had an argument with a moto-taxi-rider, which seemed relatively low-key. Still, I later heard that his whole group then plotted to murder me because of this verbal exchange!

Thailand is still a medieval country in social development. Law of the jungle reign first .Unless you have the backup of some military or police general , a show of force will immediately resolve the ‘lowly’ Thais. A word from authority will do just that. Otherwise, even the lowly Thais can bully the farang on any altercation regardless.

[ukrules]

9 hours ago, webfact said:

hoping for support from the Foreign Office under David Lammy.

🤣

[arick]

There's no such thing as mental anguish in Thailand or stress. There's no grounds for that for any lawsuit or criminal action

[Harrisfan]

18 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

 

They are just words, hot air, and I would bet my left one that if the guy was built like a brick sh-t house wall covered in tatts, the Thai would have thought twice about picking on a 77 year old, seriously.

 

I had an old guy cut in front of me a while back on a Friday night back in the home country, I beeped my horn and he kept brake checking me, until we came to the red lights, when I pounced out of the car, ran up to his window and ready to start throwing em, he wound his window down and spat at me saying F off, I swear, I could have knocked him out and done some serious damage, because I was so enraged, but I managed to calm down, walk back to my car and laugh in pity for the guy.

He spat at you and you laughed at him 

[Harrisfan]

1 hour ago, tropo said:

Are you suggesting that maybe the elderly man deserved to be knocked unconscious and sustain about 22 additional punches to the head while on the ground?... and his wife being attacked?

 

Nobody knows what happened

[4MyEgo]

26 minutes ago, Harrisfan said:

He spat at you and you laughed at him 

 

Seriously, what would I have accomplished smashing the face in of an old guy who was no match for me, besides, I can see the cops rocking up, he spat at me officer, oh really, where did his spit land on you, did anyone see him spit at you, yet here we are, ambulance carting off an old guy nearly beaten to death, turn around, your under arrest for assault, yeh, yeh, tell it to the judge in the morning. 

 

Walking away was the cleanest thing for me to do, as for others, well if they're weak, they will hit.

[metisdead]

Posts with derogatory trolling comments toward Thailand have been removed.

 

A post with a derogatory slang comment Americans has been removed. 

[NorthernRyland]

5 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

An example why tourism and long stayers are going down.. Again the greed of the Thai and the xenophobia against foreigners are being stimulated by the Thai justice and Government with Anutin at the head. It is said many times , a foreigner will never win from a Thai as that means losing face for the Thai, and foreigners are still seen as rich and coming to Thailand to destroy and change this culture.. Some weeks back it were a family that did not get their house were they had paid for. In Phuket a dispute about people sitting on steps and so on..many more other cases. Anyway the attractive land of smiles as it was is gone already for a long time and the tourists will come but the longstayers  will go to other welcoming destinations, instead of Thailand... Thailand doesn't understand the impact their actions have... but that is normal.. there is no awareness here

Isn't Thailand always worried about reputation when some fights break out and these things? They should be on red alert for these kind of international crime stories when actual high quality expats want to retire and spend big money in their country. This should have been escalated to the highest authority and squashed immediately.

[NorthernRyland]

1 hour ago, Dan747 said:

I would like to know more about the "DISPUTE?" 

sounds like common thugs to me. Claimed a dispute over boundaries, which is normal and can happen and instead of dealing with the authorities they used violence and intimidation instead.

[NorthernRyland]

4 hours ago, GroveHillWanderer said:

As for it being likely the case will be dismissed, the Middlesbrough Evening Gazette reports the couple as having been warned that they will most likely be going to jail.

No way that's going to happen or this is the end of foreign investment in Hua Hin then. Image spending millions of baht on some villa and then when some local thugs decide they own your land you can beaten and then jailed by the authorities. That's simply too incredible even for Thailand at its worst.

[ikke1959]

2 hours ago, tropo said:

No, it's not. My home country, Australia has trial by jury for serious assault cases, which this is.

 

In the UK, too

 

In the UK, more serious assault cases, those deemed "indictable offences," are tried in the Crown Court with a jury, while less serious cases, or "summary offences," are typically heard in Magistrates' Courts without a jury. 

 

Here's a brief overview of the court system in Thailand:

 

Thailand does not have a jury system; instead, judges or a panel of judges decide the guilt or innocence of a defendant, as well as determine the sentence. 

 

No Jury System:

In Thailand, the legal system operates with judges, not juries, making decisions based on the evidence presented by both the prosecution and defence. 

 

Judges Solely Decide:

The judge or panel of judges is responsible for determining guilt or innocence and, if guilty, for imposing the appropriate sentence. 

 

Departure from Western Systems:

This differs significantly from the jury trial process common in some Western legal systems, where a group of citizens decides the facts of the case. 

 

Advocacy System:

In Thailand, courtroom proceedings are conducted in an adversarial system, whereby the two opposing advocates represent their clients' cases before one or more judges. 

You are too kind... there No justice system in THailand... A Dutch man claimed at the court that he had to paid much more for the same treatment in a Government hospital than a Thai for exact the same and went to court but the judge decided that foreigners have more money so it was ok this double pricing.. And wht do you think about the refusing of bails for the protestors every time... but when a former fugitive is coming back, he is the hero and for his violating section 112 he get bail and even is allowed to visit other countries and get a political job... and the Red Bull saga... and many more cases. Thailand is only based on corruption and the few persons in power who tell the judges what to decide.. Even a Jury could not change that, and the same for the ridiculous banning of MFP and always in favor of the Government parties... No there is no justice system and it is easy as most Thais are low educated and earn just enough not starve and can't even afford a lawyer... So justice system feels safe. The only thing to change things is that the public won't accept it anymore

[lordgrinz]

48 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

No way that's going to happen or this is the end of foreign investment in Hua Hin then. Image spending millions of baht on some villa and then when some local thugs decide they own your land you can beaten and then jailed by the authorities. That's simply too incredible even for Thailand at its worst.

 

I refuse to invest anything in Thailand, my Thai wife invests her own money here. Since 2023 I have decided that very little of my money will be sent here in the future, only what is needed for basic survival or to secure my stay, otherwise everything stays overseas.