Tommy Robinson has been jailed for nine months over contempt of court.
The ex-English Defence League leader was found guilty last week of interfering with the trial of a sexual grooming gang at Leeds Crown Court in May 2018. Two Old Bailey judges said his Facebook Live video of defendants in the trial had encouraged “vigilante action”. Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, called the sentence an “absolute joke”.
What is contempt of court?
According to the government website, contempt of court is defined as follows:
‘Contempt of court’ happens when someone risks unfairly influencing a court case. It may stop somebody from getting a fair trial and can affect a trial’s outcome.
Contempt of court includes:
- disobeying or ignoring a court order
- taking photos or shouting out in court
- refusing to answer the court’s questions if you’re called as a witness
- publicly commenting on a court case, for example on social media or online news articles
- If you’re found to be in contempt of court, you could go to prison for up to 2 years, get a fine, or both.
Robinson live streamed his thoughts and voiced his opinions live on Facebook last year. Whether what he did was actually wrong is up for debate, as all he was doing was condemning disgusting actions, but in the eyes of the law he is at fault and now has to serve a jail sentence because of it.
