A Hungarian TV camerawoman who was filmed kicking or tripping up asylum seekers near the Hungary-Serbia border has been sentenced to three years probation for disorderly conduct.
A screenshot made on 9 September 2015 shows a Hungarian TV camerawoman kicking a child as she run with other asylum seekers from a police line during disturbances at Roszke, southern Hungary. Photo: AFP
Petra Laszlo was filming refugees in September 2015 as they broke through a police cordon.
She was captured kicking two people as they fled, including a young girl. Later she appeared to trip a man carrying a child.
She said she would appeal.
Judge Illes Nanasi said Laszlo's behaviour "ran counter to societal norms" and rejected her defence lawyer's argument that she was trying to protect herself.
"I turned and saw several hundred people charging toward me, it was quite incredibly frightening," she said.
She appeared in Szeged District Court hearing via video link and occasionally broke into tears. She said she had received death threats since the incident and had been subjected to a "hate campaign".
Right-wing TV channel N1TV fired her after the footage of her actions went viral on social media.
- BBC
