UK judge says Muslim women must remove veil while giving trial evidence

A British judge has ruled that Muslim women should remove their veils when giving evidence during a trial.

Judge Peter Murphy of the Blackfriars Crown Court in London announced this ruling before a 22-year-old Muslim woman from Hackney was due to stand trial, the BBC reports.

The ruling came after the woman, accused of intimidating a witness, refused to remove her veil in front of any man.

Judge Murphy said he would offer the woman a screen to shield her from public view while giving evidence, but she had to be seen by the judge, the jury and lawyers.

The ruling meant that if the woman, who started wearing a veil in May 2012, refuses to comply during her trial, she could be jailed for contempt of court.

Judge Murphy said the wearing of a veil in court had caused widespread anxiety in the judiciary about how to tackle the issue.

According to law, facial expressions of a witness or a defendant form an important element of an adversarial trial by jury in England and Wales.