British man faces two years in prison for offensive tweets
A British ex-soccer player is facing two years in prison and a fine for social media posts that were found offensive.
Charged with 'malicious communications'
Joey Barton has been summoned by Cheshire Police to appear in court at the end of this month after he criticized two female soccer commentators on X. Barton compared Eni Alukio and Lucy Ward, two soccer players-turned-sportscasters, to serial killers Fred and Rose West. The Wests were an English couple who murdered 12 women over the course of 20 years between 1967 and 1987.
“How is she even talking about men's football?” Barton wrote to his 2.8 million followers after Aluko’s coverage of a game in January. “She can't even kick a ball properly. Your coverage of the game EFC last night, took it to a new low. Eni Aluko and Lucy Ward, the Fred and Rose West of football commentary.”
Aluko accused Barton of subjecting her to “one of the worst cases of social media abuse I've ever experienced,” the Daily Mail reported.
Cheshire police have charged Barton with “malicious communications,” which carries a sentence of up to two years in prison and/or an unlimited fine. Barton is expected to appear at Warrington Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday.
“A man from Widnes has been summoned to court to face charges of malicious communications,” police said in a statement. “Following an investigation by Cheshire Police, the Crown Prosecution Service has since authorised the charges for Joseph Barton. The 41-year-old will appear at Warrington Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday 30 July. The charges relate to reports of alleged malicious communications online, between Monday 1 January and Thursday 18 January.”
Barton responded to the charges on Sunday by tweeting: “Crazy times we’re living in. Haven’t the police got enough on their hands? British system is becoming a Banana Republic. Lawfare used against its own citizens for having a dissenting voice. Not quite North Korea yet but won’t be long. Viva La Revolution.”
The former athlete also appealed to X owner Elon Musk to “protect freedom of speech”:
Hopefully @elonmusk will now step up to the plate. He said he’d protect freedom of speech on this platform.
The lawfare system in the UK being used to target people who have a dissenting voice.
You can’t even tell someone who is under qualified and clearly not good enough, that she’s not good at her job.
If you do they’ll charge you. 😭😭😭
It doesn’t even bother me anymore, they can send me to prison if they want. It’s an absolute farce.
When police are running from rioter’s in Leeds and London but they’re policing tweets. Burglary’s not being investigated. Thefts not being investigated. Grooming gangs going unchecked for years. But if you tweet something the establishment don’t like, the law will knock down your door!
Absolutely mental.
The system is failing. I look forward to the days in court.
Shall I start another GoFundMe and we’ll give the proceeds to another charity?
Let’s show Eni and her ilk, how much they’re is disliked.
TikToker arrested for offending ‘LGBTQ’
The tweet came after police reportedly arrested a British TikToker in her home for “malicious communications” after she “sent a series of social media posts that are grossly offensive to people of protected characteristics . . . LGBTQ.”
Police investigate woman for criticizing transgender doctor
Last month, The Gold Report reported that London’s Metropolitan Police are investigating Maya Forstater for criticizing a transgender doctor who boasted that his patients do not know he is a man. Forstater, who heads the women’s rights group Sex Matters, had therefore voiced concerns about whether the patients of Dr. Kamilla Kamaruddin were giving their informed consent. In a tweet, Forstater said Dr. Kamaruddin “enjoys intimately examining female patients without their consent.”
Last year, police summoned the 51-year-old Forstater to Charing Cross Police Station, where they threatened her with arrest for “malicious communications.” They interrogated her about whether she meant “to target a member of the transgender community” and if she understood that her “tweet could be perceived as transphobic.” Police wanted to know if Forstater had any “remorse” for her tweet.
When investigators demanded “evidence” that Dr. Kamaruddin examines his patients without their consent, Forstate pointed the police to Kamaruddin’s own words, in which he appears to admit to examining patients without them knowing he is truly a man.
As of June, Forstater was still under investigation.
Police interrogate elderly woman for snapping photo
In August last year, British police interrogated an elderly West Yorkshire woman for a “hate crime” after she snapped a photo of a sign expressing support for women.
The 73-year-old taxpayer used her phone to photograph a sign which read, “Stand by your trans” on which someone had placed a sticker reading, “Keep males out of women-only spaces.” Though she did not share the photo on social media, a CCTV surveillance camera caught her taking the photo. Days later two West Yorkshire Police officers called her at home claiming they were investigating the action as a hate crime and then tried to re-educate the woman.
Police arrest autistic child for ‘lesbian’ remark
That incident came just weeks after Leeds police violently arrested an autistic child for remarking that she thought a policewoman looked like a “lesbian.” The 16-year-old, who has scoliosis, was held in custody for 20 hours before being released.
Police arrest mother at her home for ‘misgendering’
In June last year, Surrey Police attempted to assign a probation officer to a journalist accused of “misgendering” and to monitor all her communications.
Caroline Farrow, a journalist and mother of five, was the subject of a five-month-long police investigation in 2019 for opinions she expressed on social media regarding gender disorientation. According to Farrow, her chief crime was “misgendering” — referring to someone by their actual gender when the person identifies by the opposite gender.
In 2022, Farrow was also arrested in her home for “malicious communications and harassment” while she was making dinner for her children. Photos provided by Farrow show police forcing their way into her house. When she asked to see a warrant, they replied, “We don’t need one.” Police seized several electronic devices, including from her husband’s parish next door. They then brought Farrow outside where a female officer subjected her to a body search and took her to the station.
Police arrest taxpayers for posts about rainbow flags
In December 2022, London’s Metropolitan Police summoned James Goddard to a meeting due to a social media post which offended supporters of rainbow flags.
In July 2022, a decorated British war veteran was arrested for “malicious communications” after police received a complaint about one of his social media posts. The offending post showed a swastika made of rainbow flags, a commentary on the state-sponsored intimidation of citizens to embrace same-sex relations and gender disorientation.
