To think Lucy Connolly has been made an example of?

[SouthernFashionista]

Have any of you read this article about Lucy Connolly who tweeted inflammatory comments following the Southport murders? I have to admit that at the time I was fully supportive of having her locked up, with the key thrown away. But reading this article made me view it all a little differently. Surely she has done her time?
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/04/04/lucy-connolly-southport-riots-axel-rudakubana-taylor-swift/

And they always use the word 'just' to minimise it.

Yes it seems the target of any 'incitement' is a determining factor. Make gun gesturess at Jews, nothing to see here.

When is the appeal do we know?

I used just to put it in perspective. It was just a tweet, which she deleted.

@Dumbdog once again, her appeal is expected to be based on the contention that the judge miscategorised the offence.

So you don’t think that inciting violence against people because of the colour of their skin is that serious?

I have to say, I massively disagree.

I also think sentences for those accessing abuse images of children (and adults, animals) should be stronger.

The two are not linked.

It is possible that LC didn’t get bail because women’s prisons aren’t overcrowded like men’s are. That would be an unfair ‘two tier’ scenario that I could support action against.

But a racist being banged up for suggesting people get burned alive because they weren’t born in the right colour skin? Not so much.

You obviously are defending a racist and you're comparing protesters with rioters. Do you think the riots were legitimate protests?

Yes, that's the reason behind the appeal. It doesn't actually mean it's right.

And?

I fully support the right to appeal and judges, like all of us, occasionally make mistakes.

It seems weird to me that the judge categorised the crime rather than the CPS, but I’m not a lawyer, so I’m sure there’s a legitimate pathway to appeal.

If her appeal is successful, she will be released.

Due process has been followed here, and everyone suggesting nefarious political machinations are really just defending a racist.

Do you think it’s fair she has been denied release on temporary license, even though that’s something thats granted to the most serious of offenders?

it’s unjust that she received a 31 month sentence even though she deleted the tweet within hours, and never once was she anywhere near the riots. Lucy was even told she wouldn’t be allowed out on tag ‘because of press and public perception’ it’s an extremely corrupt system. The former Home Secretary has said the sentence was ‘excessive’

Its not about defending Lucy’s tweet, or ‘defending a racist’ its having an opinion on the way someone has been unfairly treated and not agreeing with it. You can think Lucy’s tweet was wrong AND disagree with the aftermath and how she’s been treated.

What’s your take on Tyler Kay?

Words have consequences.

Trump’s refusal to concede the 2020 election and the swell of ‘just tweets’ about it being rigged led to an insurrection that left people dead.

The equivalent of ‘just tweets’ in 1930s led to Kristallnacht.

Words matter.

It's all about defending a racist. The article people are taking as gospel is about defending a racist.

She's not a racist who incited violence on the eve of racist riots, she's a political prisoner. Because racism and burning people alive is a legitimate political view.

She pled guilty to a crime and she was sentenced accordingly.

It doesn’t matter that she deleted it - it had been seen by 310k people and screenshots/ retweets were shared further.

Her sentence - including reductions - was in line with the guidelines for the crime she admitted to against the advice of several barristers and her husband.

One person within the probation service saying ‘you’ve upset a lot of people’ isn’t evidence of any conspiracy, it’s evidence that even people within the justice system have personal takes on the situation.

The former Home Secretary is a racist according to several organisations who complained about her to the bar association.

The home leave - I don’t know. From the telegraph article it seems that she was quite ranty in her letters - perhaps home leave work a bit like probation and you need to show contrition?

"Do you think it’s fair she has been denied release on temporary license, even though that’s something thats granted to the most serious of offenders?"

Do you know the criteria applied when deciding temporary release? Presumably this is a privilege not a right. She seems to have shown no remorse or contrition, despite her self admitted guilt. Imagine if she was let out on day release and ended up on some right wing podcast or sending some more inflammatory racist tweets etc.

This does not seem unfair to me.

Nobody is defending a racist, they have said that the tweet was wrong but the sentence was excessive.
So unless you believe she should be banged up you are defending a racist?

@Maitri108 the offence was incitement to violence, not rioting or for that matter protesting. You seem to be suggesting that it is acceptable for protestors to call for incitement to violence but not other people.

I’m not defending a racist and I don’t see her as a political prisoner. I’m concerned at the diminution of trust in our legal system caused by her treatment.

But the sentence was the lowest possible for the crime she admitted to, against the advice of several barristers and her husband.

On the one hand, people are angry against a perceived two-tier system, where justice isn’t universally applied, whilst simultaneously wanting an exception to be made for a white mother.

Everyone defending her is defending a racist because she posted racist tweets and pled guilty to racial hatred.

She was banged up for the crime she pled guilty to. Hardly an injustice.

That's what point? If Jo Brand was also guilty of an offence, that has no bearing on whether Lucy Conolly was or wasn't.

But she hasn't been unfarily treated. She was sentenced within the guidelines, for the crime SHE PLEAD GUILTY TO. Whether or not you believe she should have plead guilty is irrelevant. Judges have little scope when it comes to sentencing. She was sentenced well within the guidelines. No misjustice there.

"I’m concerned at the diminution of trust in our legal system caused by her treatment."

No doubt this is why she has been denied day release as it would definitely diminish trust in the system if an unrepentant racist criminal was granted it.

The only issue seems to be some posters are less concerned about the trust of minority groups than right wing racists.

We should trust that if the judge erred it will be addressed on appeal. Alternatively we can assume that the judge singled her out, everyone else involved in day release decisions singled her out etc

It doesn’t matter if it doesn’t seem unfair to you, Lucy has been eligible since November and it’s been denied. If she is eligible then she should be entitled to release on temporary license. It hardly seems likely that she would have go on some right wing podcast considering she deleted her tweet within hours. What a pathetic excuse to not allow her something she is eligible for.

@Mumble12 once again, the whole point is that it is the court that assesses the category of the crime. The appeal is likely to be on the basis that this category was incorrect. She was working on the basis that the applicable category would likely carry a 2 year sentence which would mean that in all likelihood she would end up with a suspended sentence.

If she had been granted bail as is normal for these sort of cases, no doubt she would have had the ability to access proper legal advice and have the time to reflect on it.

I'd be careful on what people say in this thread.

Oh dear, let me say it one final time. Nobody is defending the tweet she made they are disagreeing with the sentence she was given.

She pled guilty to a crime for which the starting point was 3 years imprisonment. She should have got 3 and a half years but due to mitigation she was given 31 months.

This has been pointed out many times on this thread but people are so busy defending a racist, they're not taking it in.