Amy Winehouse has been found not guilty of assaulting a dancer at a charity ball. On hearing the verdict, the 25-year-old singer told reporters: "I'm relieved. I'm going home". Summing up the judge ruled that the medical evidence presented by the prosecution did not show "the sort of injury that often occurs when there is a forceful punch to the eye".
In her evidence, Amy had told the court she pushed Sherene Flash when asked for a photograph after because she was scared – but denied punching her. Amy said she'd been happy to pose with the well-wisher, but asked her to wait a few minutes while she said goodbye to a friend. "I didn’t know what she was going to do," said the chanteuse of the incident, after she performed a duet with her goddaughter, 13-year-old Dionne Bromfield.
"She lunged at me and put her arm around me. I think she was being overfriendly, but that was intimidating," she added.
Prosecuting, Lyall Thompson had argued that his client Sherene politely asked the Back To Black star for a photo, but Amy responded by punching her in the eye using "unjustifiable violence". Had she been convicted, Amy, who recently returned from a controversial stay in St Lucia, faced six months in jail or a £5,000 fine.
