Twitter troll jailed for racist abuse

[Virago]

It appears that you can be held accountable for what you post on the interwebs...

A student who mocked footballer Fabrice Muamba on Twitter after the Bolton Wanderers midfielder collapsed during a match was jailed on Tuesday for inciting racial hatred.

Liam Stacey, 21, provoked revulsion with comments made while the Bolton Wanderers star still lay on the pitch.

The 23-year-old midfielder was left fighting for his life after suffering a cardiac arrest during an FA Cup tie against Tottenham Hotspur on March 17.

Fans in the stadium and those viewing on live television watched in horror as Muamba fell to the ground during the quarter-final clash that was abandoned.

Police were inundated with complaints as members of the public, former soccer player Stan Collymore among them, reported the student's comments.

Stacey, a Swansea University third-year biology undergraduate, was quickly tracked down and arrested.

Last week he admitted inciting racial hatred when he appeared at Swansea Magistrates' Court and on Tuesday he was jailed for 56 days at the same court, the Press Association reported.

The first of Stacey's messages began with "LOL (laugh out loud) and said Muamba had died.

Several people took him to task for his views and he responded with a string of offensive comments aimed at other Twitter users.

Muamba remains in intensive care in hospital where his condition is described as serious but stable.

Stacey broke down as he was taken away in handcuffs to a holding cell beneath the court.

District Judge John Charles told him: "In my view there is no alternative to an immediate prison sentence."

The court heard that, when arrested, Stacey admitted his guilt and said he had been drunk at the time.

On the day in question, he had been out watching Wales's rugby grand slam victory and had drunk up to eight pints of beer.

Gareth Jones, defending, said Stacey was completely ashamed of his behaviour.

"On the night in question his comments were vile - he admits that," Jones said.

Stacey has ambitions to become a forensic scientist.
That was now very unlikely, Jones said, and he would "pay dearly for the rest of his life" for what he had done.

http://nz.sports.yahoo.com/football/...use-of-muamba/

[oneofsix]

It appears that you can be held accountable for what you post on the interwebs...



http://nz.sports.yahoo.com/football/...use-of-muamba/

Of course you can be held accountable for what you say no matter how or where you say it. The how and where can also go to show how it is meant to be taken but in this case ... well the courts have decided it was wrong thing at the wrong time.

[Woodman]

But he was drunk.

[SMOKEU]

It's a sad world where we don't even have freedom of speech any more. It won't be long before something like that happens in NZ.

[sil3nt]

It's a sad world where we don't even have freedom of speech any more. It won't be long before something like that happens in NZ.

I am pretty sure you can have freedom of speech anywhere you go because nobody gives a fuck what you say anyway!

[nodrog:Me]

fuckin golliwogs.

[jonbuoy]

WTF

http://www.therugbyobserver.co.uk/20...erm-28578.html

http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/new...2746-30226920/

http://news.sky.com/home/uk-news/article/16060883

[avgas]

Ummm what did he say that was racist? Or have I missed it somewhere........I'm a little sick today so my attention span is a bit dead.

[jonbuoy]

They won´t print what he said, does it only apply to people with different colored skin or can I go to jail if I call someone on the internet a dumb yank, whinging pom, aussie prick, kiwi sheep shagger, yarpie, pikie, jock, mick or spick? Not all in the same sentence you understand, just to be clear.

[sil3nt]

Ummm what did he say that was racist? Or have I missed it somewhere........I'm a little sick today so my attention span is a bit dead.

The only one I can find is

LOL. Fuck Muamba. He's dead!!!

apparently there were more though.

*edit*
Here they are

[short-circuit]

It's a sad world where we don't even have freedom of speech any more. It won't be long before something like that happens in NZ.

Nothing to do with not having freedom of speech - you can say whatever the fuck you like, just don't cry when the consequences kick in

[short-circuit]

I am pretty sure you can have freedom of speech anywhere you go because nobody gives a fuck what you say anyway!

Oh and that

[mashman]

Oh for the love of Holy Black Female Jesus and her nignog offspring that turned into us... he was technically dead for 78 mins, but why haven't all of the members of the KKK, National Front, Peoples Front of Judea, SmokeU's happily racist tribe and other assorted openly racist groups not been banged up too? I now declare that the world has gone completely, totally and utterly fuckin insane.

[pzkpfw]

Nothing to do with not having freedom of speech - you can say whatever the fuck you like, just don't cry when the consequences kick in

Yep.

The internet has people creating new meanings of "free" (like "free downloads"!).

A person can't walk into their local Library and start making abusive comments to anyone they feel like. That's not the "free speech" that deserves defending.

The internet (web forums, twitter etc) have made it very very easy to be an arse, and feel there are no consequences. "Oh it's just a joke", or whatever.

I'm going to be happy when this kind of thing happens more often, and the various trolls and abusers learn to control their outbursts.

[mashman]

Is there really a difference between having a private conversation online in a public place, to having a private conversation in person in a public place? I don't think there is. Anyone who gets pissed off at the subject matter has the right to speak up, but essentially they're being nosey, rude, interrupting bastards and should keep their overly pointy beaks out of it.