Carlisle man jailed for Facebook post with gun and 'person of ethnic minority' emojis amid UK unrest
A man has been jailed in Carlisle for a racist Facebook post which the judge said should act as a deterrent to others.
Billy Thompson, 31, responded to an announcement by Cumbria Police about a dispersal order which came into force on Wednesday in anticipation of unrest in the city.
Prosecutor George Shelley told Carlisle Magistrates' Court that Thompson wrote the words "filthy b******s alongside an emoji of a person of ethnic minority and an emoji of a gun".
Thompson, of Victory Crescent, Maryport, was arrested after screenshots were captured by a civilian officer acting as an intelligence researcher to capture evidence.
He admitted sending a message that was grossly offensive, or of indecent, obscene or menacing character.
The court heard on Thursday (8 August) that Thompson had nine previous convictions for 13 offences.
Kate Hunter, mitigating, said her client apologised and did not realise the post "could constitute an offence".
She said: “He has pleaded guilty because he doesn’t intend to take this through to a trial. He appreciates the context that he finds himself, he appreciates the current affairs that we’re all aware of. He certainly says he won’t be repeating this mistake again.”
Thompson was employed full-time as a catering food delivery driver. He has a partner and 17-month-old child.
Of the criminal post and emojis, Ms Hunter said: “His version is that that comment relates to police, not to anything else."
But district judge John Temperley disagreed.
“This offence, I’m afraid, has to be viewed in the context of the current civil unrest up and down this country," he said. "And I’ve no doubt at all that your post is connected to that wider picture.
“I don’t accept that your comments and the emojis that you posted were directed at the police. I’ve read in the case summary of the comments you made on arrest which clearly demonstrate to me that there was a racial element to the messaging and the posting of these emojis.
“That has to be reflected in the sentence as there does need to be a deterrent element in the sentence that I impose, because this sort of behaviour has to stop.
“It encourages others to behave in a similar way and ultimately it leads to the sorts of problems on the streets that we’ve been seeing in so many places up and down this country. This offence is serious enough for custody.”
Thompson was handed an immediate 12-week prison sentence.
Meanwhile Stuart Burns, 41, of Briar Bank, in Carlisle, denied two charges brought under the Communications Act at the same court.
Each allege that he sent an obscene, indecent, obscene or menacing message, on 5 August, using a public communications network.
Police brought the charges after being alerted by a member of the public to online content.
Burns was granted bail and is due to stand trial in Carlisle on 29 August.
District judge John Temperley imposed a condition which prohibits Burns posting anything on social media between now and his trial date.A 16-year-old boy, from Penrith, has also been arrested on suspicion of breach of a dispersal order and a 40-year-old man from Carlisle was arrested in connection with the alleged posting of hate-related content online.Chief Superintendent Carl Patrick, Cumbria Constabulary, said officers have been working to keep communities safe. He said: "Our proactive actions and the support of our communities have resulted in no significant disorder taking place.
"We took positive action into reports of online activity which attempted to incite violence and hatred. This sends a very clear message that we will not hesitate to act against those who post such content online.
"Criminality of any kind will not be tolerated in our county, and we will do all we can to ensure offenders are brought to justice. We are not complacent and will continue to carry out this proactive policing approach."
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