Woman appeals against Southport tweet jail term

The wife of a Conservative councillor who was jailed after an online rant on the day of last year's Southport attacks "never" intended to incite violence, the Court of Appeal has heard.

Lucy Connolly, from Northampton, used a social media post on 29 July to call for "mass deportation now" and urged followers to "set fire" to hotels housing asylum seekers.

She is appealing against the sentence of two years and seven months she was given after she admitted inciting racial hatred.

Supporters staged a demonstration outside the Appeal Court in London.

The post came after three girls were stabbed and killed at a holiday club in Southport on the same date, sparking nationwide unrest.

Giving evidence from HMP Drake Hall in Eccleshall in Staffordshire, Connolly told the Appeal Court when she initially wrote the post on X that she was "really angry, really upset" and "distressed that those children had died" and that she knew how the parents felt.

The court heard that Connolly's son died tragically about 14 years ago, and that news of the murders in Southport had caused a resurgence of the anxiety caused by her son's death.

Adam King, representing Connolly, asked if she had intended for anyone to set fire to asylum hotels, or "murder any politicians".

She replied: "Absolutely not."

When asked why she had deleted the post three and a half hours after publishing it, Connolly added: "I calmed myself down, and I know that wasn't an acceptable thing to say.

"It wasn't the right thing to say; it wasn't what I wanted to happen."

Connolly told the court that during discussions with her barrister at the crown court, she did not understand that by pleading guilty she was accepting that she intended to incite violence.

She said: "When I wrote that tweet there had been no violence and it was never my intention to cause any."

Following Thursday's hearing, the Appeal Court judges said they would issue a written judgment "as soon as possible"

Connolly's husband, Ray, had been a Conservative member of West Northamptonshire Council but lost his seat on 1 May.

He remains on Northampton Town Council.

Speaking outside the Royal Courts of Justice after the hearing, Mr Connolly said: "Obviously I'm disappointed today. It didn't come to a conclusion and get a result.

"It's 279 days now my daughter's been without her mother. I'm hoping that within a week she'll be home and this will come to a positive conclusion."

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