Unfortunately, today we live in an internet world where many people air their views in the public domain."īarnes praised Brown as "an extraordinary young person with exceptional skills and a proven track record with working with young people" who had "turned down the position of a lifetime". "I'm sure everyone has said or written something they regret – I certainly have.
I think it would have been absolutely impossible to have found a young person who had not made a silly, foolish or even perhaps a deeply offensive comment during their short lifetime. I was recruiting a young person, warts and all. The tweets, posted when Brown was aged 14 to 16, have now been deleted from her Twitter account.īarnes said the idea of a youth crime commissioner was a good one "to reduce the gap between younger people and the authorities, particularly the police".īarnes said: "I was not recruiting an angel, and I was not recruiting a police officer. "I ask for the time and space to recover from what has been a very difficult time and to allow me to move on." "I now feel that in the interests of everyone concerned – in particular the young people of Kent who I feel will benefit enormously from the role of a youth commissioner – that I should stand down as I feel that the recent media furore will continue and hamper my ability to perform the job to the level required. I hope this may stand as a learning experience for many other young people.
I have fallen into the trap of behaving with bravado on social networking sites. "I strongly reiterate that I am not racist or homophobic.
I am really sorry for any offence caused. In a statement, Brown said: "I accept that I have made comments on social networking sites which have offended many people. Brown pleaded to be left alone now that she was standing down.Īnn Barnes, the police and crime commissioner for Kent, admitted the tweets of her chief youth aide had not been vetted before the appointment, but said the role, which had been one of her main manifesto commitments, was a good idea and she would look for another candidate. Critics claimed the comments were racist, homophobic and condoned violence and drug-taking.
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