Lucy Connolly appeal Rejected

👍

I suppose none of us really know what was going on behind the scenes post the Southport tragedy. Like so much news, it is edited.
Terribly sad the tragedy and the ensuing outpouring of abuse and hatred.

25Avalon

Wyllow3

I agree about Huw Edwards but we cant compare different crimes, its up to the criminal justice system - perhaps to take his crimes more seriously.

I also think Avalon there should be no "let or right" in justice.

But the court, on the sentencing appeal, did very much take her circumstances into account. I posted this a couple of pages back
www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Lucy-Connolly-v-The-King.pdf

Its the full court report and not too long, but it gives considerable time to psychiatrists reports and the personal circumstances and does specifically recognise it in the sentence.

I have read all of that Wyllow3 and like most legal cases it is not that simple with several nuances. The judge said from the start however that it was about punishing and deterring. I doubt that Connolly’s remarks did actually incite the riots that then ensued but the fact that there were violent protests and riots did her case no good.

Losing a child in the circumstances that Lucy Connolly did can indeed change you and leave you with anger that can resurface. That anger does, however, need to be controlled or we cease to be a civilised society. The public see compassion extended to others but that was never going to be applied in this case from the start because there were too many very violent riots threatening the fabric of society. It is a very sad case really. I would have liked to see more compassion now things have quietened down. Or have they? The authorities must be very concerned that there are no repeats so it’s the deterrent aspect.

Good comments 😃

Clearly this vile woman had followers who shared her views, she had shared her views on a number of occasions so they knew what sort of person she was. So, she was not only inciting violence and possible murder, she was inciting a group of people who might take action and some of them did. IMO she thoroughly deserved her sentence and I'm shocked that anyone would defend her. Using the "free speech" argument to support this woman is to completely disregard why free speech has to stay within the law and the riots that followed her tweet evidence that.

foxie48

Oreo

Sometimes sentencing seems very odd. One of the Blenheim gold toilet gang heist got a two year suspended sentence and we are awaiting sentencing for the Sycamore Gap tree fellers which is more likely to be two years inside.

Just for the record, this man was not part of the gang that stole the toilet, he offered to try to sell it and he got 240 hours of community service as well as the suspended sentence. We don't know what sentence the tree fellers will receive. The guidelines are anything between a discharge and four years apparently!

He consorted with known thieves and was acting as a fence involving a large amount of money.A two year suspended sentence and community service which he may or may not bother to do is hardly much of a sentence.

Casdon

Oreo

Presumably her other tweets had nothing to do with suggesting that others set fire to migrant hotels?
Racial offensive tweets aren’t ( yet ) considered prison worthy.
Quite a few of the sentences handed down were very OTT in my opinion and we’re allowed to have different opinions on this I would hope.

For Oreo - she pleaded guilty to inciting racial hatred, which is covered by the prosecution guidance.
www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/racist-and-religious-hate-crime-prosecution-guidance

In my view she was badly advised in pleading guilty.

Oreo

Sometimes sentencing seems very odd. One of the Blenheim gold toilet gang heist got a two year suspended sentence and we are awaiting sentencing for the Sycamore Gap tree fellers which is more likely to be two years inside.

Just for the record, this man was not part of the gang that stole the toilet, he offered to try to sell it and he got 240 hours of community service as well as the suspended sentence. We don't know what sentence the tree fellers will receive. The guidelines are anything between a discharge and four years apparently!

Isn't it a bit weird to be asking for compassion for the person who incited others to burn innocent human beings to death? Shouldn't the compassion be directed towards the people who must have been terrified that they were going to die at the hands of a mob?

If you were terrorising someone and I urged you to murder them, should people feel sorry for me if I had to face the consequences?

Very thoughtful, Avalon.

As you've read the case you can see just how appalling some of her words were on several occasions:

... and how she was actually taunting authorities to arrest or in someway intervene.

And then embarking on an appeal which not only took a lot of their money but brought the whole family into the public gaze, and was never likely to succeed, although it did show that psychiatrists had been involved and compassion shown on the basis of her circumstances.

But it did the opposite of quietening down, it brought it all up.

Wyllow3

I agree about Huw Edwards but we cant compare different crimes, its up to the criminal justice system - perhaps to take his crimes more seriously.

I also think Avalon there should be no "let or right" in justice.

But the court, on the sentencing appeal, did very much take her circumstances into account. I posted this a couple of pages back
www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Lucy-Connolly-v-The-King.pdf

Its the full court report and not too long, but it gives considerable time to psychiatrists reports and the personal circumstances and does specifically recognise it in the sentence.

I have read all of that Wyllow3 and like most legal cases it is not that simple with several nuances. The judge said from the start however that it was about punishing and deterring. I doubt that Connolly’s remarks did actually incite the riots that then ensued but the fact that there were violent protests and riots did her case no good.

Losing a child in the circumstances that Lucy Connolly did can indeed change you and leave you with anger that can resurface. That anger does, however, need to be controlled or we cease to be a civilised society. The public see compassion extended to others but that was never going to be applied in this case from the start because there were too many very violent riots threatening the fabric of society. It is a very sad case really. I would have liked to see more compassion now things have quietened down. Or have they? The authorities must be very concerned that there are no repeats so it’s the deterrent aspect.

I agree about Huw Edwards but we cant compare different crimes, its up to the criminal justice system - perhaps to take his crimes more seriously.

I also think Avalon there should be no "let or right" in justice.

But the court, on the sentencing appeal, did very much take her circumstances into account. I posted this a couple of pages back
www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Lucy-Connolly-v-The-King.pdf

Its the full court report and not too long, but it gives considerable time to psychiatrists reports and the personal circumstances and does specifically recognise it in the sentence.

25Avalon

Justice should not be about left or right views it should be fair and should be seen to be fair. IMO there should also be room for compassion which seems to be lacking here. Jails are not necessarily the best answer if we want to rehabilitate people and our jails are currently too full.

What grounds were there for compassion? She knew what she was writing.

Wyllow3

Please can you explain why you think it's "2 tier" justice, Lilyflower?

I see a crime and an appropriate sentence.

For their own reasons, some on the right seem to think it's OK to let racial and murdering statements like hers go unpunished. Why?

I understand Lilyflower's pov.

Huw Edwards pleaded guilty too and received just a six month sentence which was suspended. A totally different crime but heinous nonetheless.

Justice should not be about left or right views it should be fair and should be seen to be fair. IMO there should also be room for compassion which seems to be lacking here. Jails are not necessarily the best answer if we want to rehabilitate people and our jails are currently too full.

Please can you explain why you think it's "2 tier" justice, Lilyflower?

I see a crime and an appropriate sentence.

For their own reasons, some on the right seem to think it's OK to let racial and murdering statements like hers go unpunished. Why?

Lucy Connolly entered a guilty plea. The judge followed sentencing guidelines.

Tenaciousd

25Avalon

There seems an awful lot of hatred and lack of compassion on this thread.

Completely agree and it's so ironic. Those of us trying to show compassion are the recipients of the hatred!
Whatever the opinions of commenters, it still should be about the core tenet of criminal justice - does the punishment fit the crime? I think that she has learned her lesson. Don't forget, the government is releasing prisoners because the prisons are nearing capacity. I have a relative who is a prison officer and he disagrees that she should be in prison, being acquainted with some of the horrific crimes carried out by prisoners that he deals with on a daily basis.

Quite so Tenaciousd. Also what is the purpose of punishment? Is it just to shut someone away and deprive them of freedom that is pure punishment, to act as a deterrent, or is it to reform and rehabilitate? If the latter then this would arguably be better served by the earlier release and perhaps some community work. I knew someone who committed fraudulent crimes against HMRC obtaining vast sums of money from benefits, who should have gone to prison, but because she had 4 young children had a suspended sentence and was ordered to undertake many hours of community work.

Lilyflower

No one is saying that the woman’s online comment was anything but crass and awful. Even her defenders caveat their support with condemnation of her inflammatory language.

The point, however, is that keeping her in prison for what she is obliged to serve for a sentence of 31 months is disproportionate considering the sentences that other defendants who have committed far more heinous offences are given.

There is a distinctive whiff of two-tier soi disant justice about it and a very strong suggestion of element of politicisation about the case to the extent that Connolly is now being presented as a political prisoner.

She represents a massive own goal for courts and judges who are struggling against accusations of left wing bias as it is.

In the court proceedings it's not said that she serves the full 31 months.

Currently prisoners unless they fall into certain criteria as being dangerous to release are released at 40% or 50% of their sentence.

40% would mean she is out in 4.5 months.

25Avalon

There seems an awful lot of hatred and lack of compassion on this thread.

Completely agree and it's so ironic. Those of us trying to show compassion are the recipients of the hatred!
Whatever the opinions of commenters, it still should be about the core tenet of criminal justice - does the punishment fit the crime? I think that she has learned her lesson. Don't forget, the government is releasing prisoners because the prisons are nearing capacity. I have a relative who is a prison officer and he disagrees that she should be in prison, being acquainted with some of the horrific crimes carried out by prisoners that he deals with on a daily basis.

Casdon

Can the UK prosecute somebody who isn’t a UK citizen for something they said in another country though GrannyGravy13, I’m guessing not?

The U.K. cannot, not sure about the law in Eire?

Can the UK prosecute somebody who isn’t a UK citizen for something they said in another country though GrannyGravy13, I’m guessing not?

Casdon

For GrannyGravy13 regarding Kneecap - one of them has now been charged with a terrorist office regarding a concert in the UK last year.
news.sky.com/story/member-of-kneecap-charged-with-terror-offence-13369377

Yes I saw that on that on the 10pm news last night, not for encouraging the murder of Conservative MP’s.

No one is saying that the woman’s online comment was anything but crass and awful. Even her defenders caveat their support with condemnation of her inflammatory language.

The point, however, is that keeping her in prison for what she is obliged to serve for a sentence of 31 months is disproportionate considering the sentences that other defendants who have committed far more heinous offences are given.

There is a distinctive whiff of two-tier soi disant justice about it and a very strong suggestion of element of politicisation about the case to the extent that Connolly is now being presented as a political prisoner.

She represents a massive own goal for courts and judges who are struggling against accusations of left wing bias as it is.

Thank you for that. It shows although you can't change some POV, once many people actually get talking and understanding......

Re tweets - remember the Cheshire woman who was also jailed?

The court heard she was responding to an online post picturing people helping to repair the mosque in Southport after it was damaged during violent disorder that followed the stabbings.

The court was told Sweeney wrote: It’s absolutely ridiculous. Don’t protect the mosque. Blow the mosque up with the adults in it. Nothing to do with migrants.

BBC News - Six months on from Tamworth riots: How are people feeling? - BBC News
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c14n14v8me8o

The Holiday Inn in Tamworth was one of the hotels set on fire last summer.