The suspects were prosecuted under laws criminalizing “offensive” speech online.
Thousands of people in the UK have been detained and questioned by police over online posts deemed threatening or offensive, The Times has reported, citing custody data.
According to figures published on Friday, officers make around 12,000 arrests annually under Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 and Section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988. These laws criminalize causing distress by sending messages that are “grossly offensive,” or by sharing content of an “indecent, obscene or menacing character” via electronic communications networks.
In 2023 alone, officers from 37 police forces made 12,183 arrests – around 33 per day. The Times said this marks a 58% increase from 2019, when 7,734 arrests were recorded.
At the same time, government data shows that convictions and sentencings have dropped by nearly a half. While some cases were resolved through out-of-court settlements, the most commonly cited reason was “evidential difficulties,” particularly when victims declined to proceed.
The statistics have sparked public outcry, with civil liberties groups accusing the authorities of overpolicing the internet and undermining free speech through the use of “vague” communications laws.
The Times highlighted the case of Maxie Allen and Rosalind Levine, who were arrested on January 29 after raising concerns in a private parents’ WhatsApp group about the hiring process of their daughter’s school. Six uniformed officers arrived at their home, detained them in front of their youngest child, and took them to a police station.
The couple was questioned on suspicion of harassment, malicious communications, and causing a nuisance on school property after the school alleged they had “cast aspersions” about the chair of governors. They were fingerprinted, searched, and locked in a cell for eight hours.
“It was hard to shake off the sense that I was living in a police state,” Allen told the Daily Mail, adding that the messages contained “no offensive language or threat” but were simply a “bit sarcastic.”
https://thegrayzone.com/2020/11/02/uk-labour-civil-war-jeremy-corbyn-vindicated-on-anti-semitism-smears-gets-suspended-anyway/
Used to smear people. Not only incompetent but also a b**dy hypocrite !!!
Hurty words to describe the truth about someone should never be a criminal offence.
The real ofenders are the leaders creating law that penalises, convicts citizens for speaking or publishing truthful information.
For example, Starmer is the most unqualified political clown ever. He serves his rich masters and not the people of the UK. Luxon has shown himself to be a puppet to his masters by releasing GE, not stopping fluoride in our drinking water and touting for war. Macron imprisones popular political leaders who reveal his secrets and threaten to thown him out of office.
Sure those words might be annoying. Truthfully annoying.
I have no doubt that the Mossad / Unit 8200 has got the goods on Luxon, so he’ll be a useful tool based on being compromised, and spineless to stop the Globalist / Zionist agendas from ruining NZ even further!
Vote for the NZ Loyal Party next time, and let’s see IF the Uni-Party cancels the votes and suspends the (s)election results if NZ Loyal and NZ First arrive in 2027…
Yep, that shall be the new viral meme: Vote NZ Loyal.
Our free speech is going to be attacked by this governments “National Action Plan Against Racism” initiative. This will deem any criticism against ‘co-governance’ (apartheid) “threatening or offensive”, and the corporate apartheid agenda can’t have that now, can they.
The UK police would be better deployed in full hazmat suits in Birmingham where a national tragedy is building -in the shape of thousands of tons of rat infested rubbish bags!
This is why we need to get the NZ Loyal Party into power, to insure that the same s*** happening in the UK, US and Europe doesn’t happen here!
Oh the National clowns are currently looking into hate speech laws, its only a matter of time…..
Forget, murders, rapes and robberies, hurty words are the cause de jour……
And still they use their real names! The first rule of the internet was to never post your personnel details online, today you should use an allias and other measures.
You are right. Who would be stupid enough to use their own name.