Couple Faces Jail Time For Sex On The Beach

If You know the old saying "When In Rome Do as the Romans Do" this cautionary cliche would be well worth heeding if you are a westerner living and working in the middle east. On July 5th A British couple, Michelle Palmer 36, and Vince Acors 34, were arrested after they were caught having sexual relations on top of a plastic chair on the beach in Dubai, which is located in the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) Acors is a British businessman involved in the telecom industry and Palmer was a manager for a publishing firm with offices in the city. According to reports the events that led up to the arrest happened earlier in the day when Ms. Palmer met Mr. Acors, who is a married man with a family back in Britain, at a company party in the early afternoon where some serious drinking was taking place. This activity went on for the rest of the day and well into the night when Palmer and Acors decided to head for the beach. At the beach they were first spotted by a local policeman who saw what they were up to and put a stop to it and let them off with a warning. The policeman shortly returned to the scene and found the two had picked up where they left off and proceeded to arrest them. Ms. Palmer in her drunken state is said to have shouted at the officer and called him "A dumb fucking Arab" and other words to that effect. In Dubai it is a crime to engage in sexual activity with anyone outside of your spouse which is punishable by up to 6 years in jail so both of them are facing some real jail time. The matter is further complicated by the fact that this particular event has recieved some serious attention around the world and the authorites in Dubai may be interested in throwing the book at the two offenders in order to set an example for others who may be so inclined to engage in this kind of behavior in their country. Public displays of affection are a constant problem on the beaches of Dubai because there are so many westerners who live and work in the city and like to party hard when they are off. The local muslims who live there are said to constantly complain to the authorities that there is so much vulgar activity taking place in plain view that they cant even take their children to the beach. The local authorites are therefore cracking down on it because of the complaints.

Postscript - On october 16th, 2008 both Mr. Acors and Ms. Palmer were sentenced in a Dubai court to three months in jail and fined $250 each. They were further ordered to leave the country upon completion of their sentences.