Chelsea and Australia star Sam Kerr's lawyers claim 'abuse of process' and aim to get racial harassment charges dismissed

After Kerr entered a not-guilty plea in court on Monday after being charged with "using insulting, threatening or abusive statements that caused alarm or distress" to a police officer in January 2023, the Australian's legal counsel has claimed an "abuse of process" in the prosecution's case. Given that it took 13 months for the prosecution to put forward its case, her lawyers are trying to overthrow these charges at her first scheduled court hearing on April 26 - reports Sky News.

If Kerr's appeal is unsuccessful, the 30-year-old striker's hearing will take place in February 2025. If found guilty, the public order act she has been charged with carries a prison sentence of up to two years and/or a substantial fine.

Football Australia were not aware of Sam Kerr's charge of racially aggravated harassment until it was made public, says CEO James Johnson.

On Tuesday, he told reporters: "I woke up this morning like everyone else did to the news. And that is when Football Australia found out about this unsettling event. We are trying to get to the bottom of it at the moment. We have got our own questions that we'd like to know, we have got to find out what actually happened. But we also want to say that there is a process that is under way in the United Kingdom and that process needs to run its course."

So far, Chelsea have declined to comment on the matter, as has Kerr. It remains a matter of time before the next development in this case occurs.

After finding out about this news, Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson added: "The only thing I can comment is my experience and interaction with Sam as a person, as a footballer, and I have only positive experiences about that.”