Chelsea, Australia star striker Sam Kerr to face trial for alleged racial harassment of police officer
Chelsea and Australia women's national team striker Sam Kerr will stand trial in London on a charge of racially aggravated harassment of a police officer.
Kerr pleaded not guilty via video conference in the Kingston Crown Court on Monday to the charge that was filed Jan. 21, according to multiple reports. Greater London's Metropolitan Police allege that Kerr harassed an officer on Jan. 30 of last year in Twickenham, southwest of London.
"The charge relates to an incident involving a police officer who was responding to a complaint involving a taxi fare on 30 January 2023 in Twickenham," a Metropolitan Police statement reads.
Details of what Kerr allegedly said or did are unclear. She's scheduled to face a four-day trial that will start next February, the Daily Mail reports. Two officers are expected to provide evidence at the trial. Per the report, Kerr stated only her name and entered her not guilty plea during Monday's hearing.
Per the Daily Mail, Judge Judith Elaine Coello inquired about Kerr's intended defense when speaking with Kerr's lawyer Grace Forbes.
"I understand that the defense is that she didn't intend to cause alarm, harassment or distress to the officer, [her behavior] did not amount to it, and it was not racially aggravated," Coello said to Forbes.
Kerr, 30, is an international soccer star and has been the captain of the Australia women's national team since 2019. She's the team's all-time leading goal scorer and led host Australia to the semifinals of the Women's World Cup in 2023 with knockout-round wins over Denmark and France, a run that captivated her home country. She has competed for Australia at the 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023 World Cups and at the 2016 and 2020 Olympics.
Kerr played multiple stints in the National Women's Soccer League from 2013-19 and is the U.S. league's all-time leading goal scorer with 41. She won league MVP honors in 2017 and 2019.
She joined London's Chelsea FC of the Women's Super League in 2019 and eventually emerged as the team's top scoring threat. She earned the Golden Boot for the 2020-21 season as the WSL's top scorer with 21 goals while leading Chelsea to the WSL title. The WSL championship was the second of four straight for Chelsea since Kerr joined the team.
Kerr suffered a torn ACL in January and will miss the remainder of Chelsea's 2023-24 season. She's not expected to recover in time to play for Australia in the Summer Olympics in Paris.
