Lucy Connolly, a childminder from Northampton and wife of a Tory councillor, was jailed for social-media posts that threatened violence after she falsely blamed an asylum seeker for the Southport attack. She pleaded guilty to distributing material intended to stir up racial hatred and received a two-year-seven-month sentence, serving less than a year. Connolly described herself as a political prisoner on release and has become prominent among far-right circles. UK Online Safety Act criticism from US figures, including vice-president JD Vance and the White House, has raised concerns about free-speech implications internationally.
Connolly, the wife of a Tory councillor, unexpectedly became a cause celebre for the far right last year when she was jailed for posting set fire to all the fucking hotels full of the bastards on social media, after falsely believing the Southport attack was carried out by a Muslim asylum seeker. And now Connolly, who described herself as a political prisoner when she was released from jail last week, could be catapulted to international fame.
It comes after the US criticised the Online Safety Act, which aims to regulate online content and will affect social media companies most of which are headquartered there. The vice-president, JD Vance, said the UK government was going down a very dark path over free speech. The White House previously said it was monitoring Connolly's case back in May, adding that the US remains concerned about infringements on freedom of expression.
Connolly was arrested and charged with distributing material with the intention of stirring up racial hatred, which carries a maximum seven-year sentence. She pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two years and seven months in prison, but served less than a year. She would later portray it as something that could happen to anyone. But court documents tell a different story about Connolly, who had repeatedly made what the judge in her trial described as racist remarks in multiple social media posts.
Collection
[
|
...
]