Singer Lee Ryan, 39, has successfully applied to withdraw his guilty plea for drunkenly assaulting a police officer and making racial slurs towards a black flight attendant. The incident occurred on July 31, 2022, when Ryan was arrested on a British Airways flight from Glasgow to London City Airport after he became drunk and made derogatory comments towards the attendant, Leah Gordon. Ryan was subsequently found guilty of racially aggravated common assault by beating and behaving in an abusive way towards the cabin crew member, as well as assaulting a police officer by biting him.
At a hearing in January, Ryan had pleaded guilty to the charges, but he has since claimed that he received bad advice from his solicitor, Mike Rainford, and that he was made to feel like he “had to” plead guilty. Ryan has also claimed that he has autism spectrum disorder and slow processing skills, which led to him being unaware of what was happening during the plea hearing. According to a psychological report, Ryan has autistic spectrum disorder and slow processing skills, which can impair his understanding of what is said to him. Ryan claimed that he initially chose not to plead guilty to assaulting a police officer because he did not bite him, stating that he was being made to do it, but he was unable to believe the words coming out of his mouth.
Singer Lee Ryan (Via Singer Lee Ryan/Twitter)
The deputy chief magistrate, Tan Ikram, ruled that it would be unjust not to allow Ryan to withdraw his guilty plea, citing the complexities of Ryan’s case and his diagnosis with autism. Ikram noted that Ryan was diagnosed with ADHD and subsequently with Asperger’s, which can lead to slow processing of information and responding inappropriately to what is said. The magistrate also pointed out that Ryan was given advice that he may not have fully understood, and that it would be unfair to hold him to a guilty plea that may not have been made voluntarily.
Ryan will now face a fresh hearing in July to determine whether he will be put on trial for the charges. The case highlights the complexities of Ryan’s situation, including his claims of autism spectrum disorder and slow processing skills, which may have affected his understanding of the legal proceedings.
