The creator of acclaimed British comedies Father Ted and The IT Crowd and co-creator of Black Book has been acquitted of harassing transgender activists on social media. However, he was found guilty last year of damaging their cellphones during the encounter.
The prosecution said that Graham Linehan, an Irish comedy writer known for the following works, Honest criticism of the trans movementwrote “repeated, abusive and unreasonable” social media posts about Sophia Brooks. He denied the charges.
District Judge Bryony Clarke said Linehan’s social media posts were “highly offensive, insulting and even unnecessary” but did not amount to harassment. She said Mr Brooks was “angry and fed up” when Mr Linehan took Mr Brooks’ mobile phone and smashed it to the ground outside a conference venue in London last October.
The comedy writer’s lawyer, Sarah Vine, said Mr Linehan had “temporarily lost control”.
During the trial, the 57-year-old writer said trans activists had made his “life hell” and described the plaintiffs as “young soldiers in the trans activist army.”
Summarizing the decision, the justices said, “This court does not ‘pick sides’ on matters of public debate. This court is not involved in that debate, nor is it required to decide it, and nothing in this judgment can or should be taken to imply that the court has decided the issues to which it relates.”
Mr Linehan was fined £500 (€569) and ordered to pay court costs of £650 (€740) and a statutory surcharge of £200 (€227). His lawyer said he plans to appeal the conviction.
Linehan is Arrested in September on suspicion of inciting violence against trans womeninsisted that if she was not stopped from using the women-only facility by calling the police or other means, she would be beaten.
his arrest Opinions are divided online And it sparked a debate over which online comments constituted hate speech and merited police intervention.
Speaking after the arrest, London’s police chief said: He didn’t want police officers to “police war discussions about a toxic culture” and Controversial Harry Potter author JK Rowling As expected, he expressed his opinion, “What the hell happened to England?”
Mr Linehan spoke outside the courtroom after the hearing and said he was satisfied with the judge’s findings.
“The judge found me and the women who gave evidence on my behalf to be reliable and honest witnesses, and said my actions were not criminal and did not amount to harassment.”
He added that he was grateful to the Free Speech Union for its “unwavering support” and protection of those who “make their voices heard.”