UK former far-right leader freed on bail
london — British former far-right leader Tommy Robinson was freed from prison on Wednesday after winning a legal challenge in a case that has galvanised his supporters worldwide.
Robinson, who founded a streetlevel Islamophobic group called the English Defence League, was serving a 13-month jail sentence.
He was jailed for contempt of court and breaching a previous suspended sentence, having used social media to live-stream outside a Leeds Crown Court in northern England in breach of reporting restrictions around a trial.
Since his imprisonment, supporters of US President Donald Trump including former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon have taken up his cause.
Street protests have demanded the release of Robinson, who has previous convictions for assault, drug possession and fraud.
A panel of three judges at the Court of Appeal in London quashed the finding of contempt, citing technical flaws, and freed him on conditional bail pending a new hearing.
“The appellant is granted bail and the matter of contempt at Leeds Crown Court is remitted to be heard again,” said Lord Chief Justice Ian Burnett, the head of the English judiciary, reading the judgement.
“We are satisfied that the decision at Leeds Crown Court to proceed to committal to prison so promptly... gave rise to unfairness.
“There was no clarity about what parts of the video were relied upon as amounting to contempt, what parts the appellant accepted through his counsel amounted to contempt and for what conduct he was sentenced.”
His case will be re-heard at England’s Old Bailey central criminal court in London “as soon as reasonably possible”, the judges said.
The 35-year-old, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, was not in court for the hearing.
Around 20 supporters, outnumbered two to one by police officers, chanted his name outside court while another 20 or so counter-protesters were also present. —