Drunk Irish lawyer jailed for abusive rant at Air India crew found dead in UK
London, Jul 4: An Irish international human rights lawyer, who was jailed after being caught on camera hurling abusive rants at Air India crew on a flight from Mumbai to London, has been found dead just days after her release from prison in the UK.
Simone Burns, who was sentenced to six months in April after racially abusing and spitting at the crew for being refused alcohol mid-air last year, is thought to have committed suicide.
The 50-year-old was released from Bronzefield women's prison on licence, or parole, on May 20 and was found dead at the foot of the Beachy Head cliffs in East Sussex, in the south-east of England, 13 days later.
"The body of a woman found at Beachy Head on June 1 has been identified as Simone Burns from Hove," a local Sussex Police spokesperson said.
"The death is not being treated as suspicious and the next of kin have been informed. The matter has been passed to the coroner's officer, the spokesperson said.
The barrister, who was born in Belfast in Northern Ireland and also used the surname O'Broin, had pleaded guilty to being drunk on an aircraft and assault during a hearing at Isleworth Crown Court in London back in April.
Following her death, friends said that the sentence had a severe impact on Burns, whose mid-air rant went viral on social media.
It emerged in court that she spat at a flight attendant during her foul-mouthed racist tirade after she was refused alcohol mid-air in November last.
"The experience of a drunk and irrational person in the confines of an aircraft is frightening, not least on a long-haul flight, and poses a potential risk to safety, said Judge Nicholas Wood, as he sentenced Burns to six months in prison for being drunk on an aircraft and two months for assault, sentences to run concurrently.
"You were drunk and obnoxious almost from the beginning to the end. You were abusive, contemptuous and confrontational and used appalling language, he said.
Burns, born in Northern Ireland and living in Hove in England, was also ordered to pay 300 pounds compensation to the person she assaulted, with the judge saying that "spitting straight into a crew member's face at close range is a particularly insulting and upsetting act".
A member of the Air India cabin crew described her conduct as unlike anything he had seen during his 34-year aviation career.
The judge at Isleworth Crown Court said he was satisfied the offence was racially aggravated and the language Burns used would have been extremely upsetting for the airline staff.
Noting Simone Burns' work with refugees around the world, Judge Wood added: "You are a woman, not just of good character but a positive and impeccable character a righter of wrongs. What this has done, thanks to social media, (has meant) you have had death threats and been a hermit in your home. You are a person who has done good work throughout your life."
Burns' defence lawyer suggested that her actions were due to a "mixture of altitude, the consumption of drink and anxiety" at the fact that she was likely to miss the funeral of an uncle. Mark Kimsey told the court that his client was "totally ashamed of her behaviour".
"This is not a lady who has a drink problem. This is not a woman who has a drug problem. This is totally out of character," he said.
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Assam polls: Cong announces first list of 42 candidates, Gaurav to contest from Jorhat
Guwahati (PTI): The opposition Congress on Tuesday took the lead in announcing its first list of 42 candidates for the upcoming assembly elections in Assam, with it comprising both sitting MLAs and former ministers, and also new faces, including sons of three prominent politicians.
The party's chief ministerial candidate and state president Gaurav Gogoi will contest from the prestigious Jorhat assembly constituency, currently held by BJP's Hitendra Nath Goswami.
The Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha will make his first electoral foray for the assembly.
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Gogoi is currently the party MP from the Jorhat parliamentary constituency and previously represented Kaliabor twice before it was reconstituted during the delimitation exercise in the state.
The leader of the opposition in the state assembly, Debabrata Saikia, will contest from the family stronghold of Nazira, which he has represented since 2016. His father, former chief minister Hiteswar Saikia, and his mother, Hemoprava Saikia, previously represented the constituency.
Three sitting MLAs -- Nandita Das from Hajo-Sualkuchi, Diganta Barman from Barkhetry and Nurul Huda from Rupohihat -- have also been included in the list.
Das, a two-time MLA, had earlier contested from Boko but following the delimitation exercise in the state, she has been shifted to Hajo-Sualkuchi while Barman and Huda will contest from the same seats they represented in the current assembly.
Former minister and state Congress president Ripun Bora will contest from Barchalla while another former minister, Ajit Singh, will contest from Udharbond constituency in Barak Valley.
Former minister and Deputy Speaker Pranati Phukan, a four-time MLA till 2016, will contest from Naharkatia in Upper Assam.
Tanzil Hussain, son of Dhubri MP Rakibul Hussain, will contest from Samaguri where he had lost to BJP's Diplu Ranjan Sarmah in the 2024 by-elections which was necessitated following the election of the senior Hussain to Lok Sabha.
Prateek Bordoloi, son of Nagaon MP Prodyut Bordoloi, will contest the Margherita seat which was represented by his father thrice since 2001.
Former five-time MP and prominent tea tribe leader Paban Singh Ghatowar's son Pranjal Ghatowar will contest from the Chabua-Lahowal seat.
Assam Pradesh Mahila Congress president Mira Borthakur, who had unsuccessfully contested the last parliamentary polls from Gauhati, has been given the ticket for the prestigious Dispur constituency.
Former BJP MLA Ashok Sarma, who was denied ticket by the ruling party in 2021 and went on to join the Congress in 2024, will contest from his previous Nalbari seat.
Another former BJP MLA and Deputy Speaker Aminul Haque Laskar, who joined the Congress in 2024, will contest from Sonai constituency in Barak Valley.
Former AGP MLA Satyabrat Kalita, who joined the Congress in September 2025, will contest from Kamalpur seat.
Other prominent faces in the list include former Congress MLAs Durga Bhumij from Doomdooma, Binanda Kumar Saikia from Sipahjhar and Bubul Das from Jagiroad (SC) constituency.
The Congress is a leading part of the unified opposition alliance, 'Asom Sonmilito Morcha', formed to challenge the ruling BJP, and has entered into seat-sharing arrangements with the Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) and the Left, but is yet to finalise it with Raijor Dal.
Presently, the ruling BJP's strength in the 126-member assembly is 64, while its allies AGP has nine MLAs, UPPL has seven and BPF has three members.
In the opposition camp, the Congress has 26 MLAs, AIUDF has 15 members and CPI(M) has one MLA. There is an Independent legislator as well.
