Lucy Connolly, the wife of a Conservative councillor, has been jailed for 31 months for inciting racial hatred on X on the day of the Southport attacks.
The 41-year-old childminder was sentenced today after previously pleading guilty to the charges on September 2.
Connolly was charged in August with publishing material intending to stir up racial hatred, after publishing posts calling for mass deportation and setting fire to hotels housing immigrants in the aftermath of the Southport murders.
Birmingham Crown Court was told Connolly, who is married to West Northamptonshire councillor Raymond Connolly, posted a message on July 29 which read: ‘Mass deportation now, set fire to all the f****** hotels full of the bastards for all I care… If that makes me racist, so be it.’
The court was told Lucy Connolly, who has no previous convictions, also sent another tweet commenting on a sword attack which read: ‘I bet my house it was one of these boat invaders.’
Another X post sent by Connolly – commenting on a video posted by Tommy Robinson – read ‘Somalian I guess’ and was accompanied by a vomiting emoji.
In a subsequent message sent on WhatsApp, she bragged about ‘playing the mental health card’ if she was arrested.
Prosecutor Naeem Valli told the court Connolly also sent a message saying she intended to work her notice period as a childminder ‘on the sly’ despite being de-registered.
Connolly appeared before the court via a video-link to HMP Peterborough while her husband watched the proceedings from the public gallery.
Passing sentence on Lucy Connolly, the Recorder of Birmingham Judge Melbourne Inman KC said of the Southport stabbings: ‘Some people used that tragedy as an opportunity to sow division and hatred, often using social media, leading to a number of towns and cities being disfigured.’
After noting that Connolly’s post on X inciting attacks on hotels had been viewed 310,000 times, the judge added: ‘When you published those words you were well aware how volatile the situation was.
‘That volatility led to serious disorder where mindless violence was used.’
The judge added that Connolly – who remained calm on the prison video-link – had encouraged activity which threatened or endangered life.
Tom Muir, defending, said Connolly had lost a child in horrific circumstances and was distinguished from other offenders using social media in that she had sent the tweet at the heart of the case before any violence against asylum seekers had started.
Mr Muir said: ‘The horrendous way in which she lost her son, being turned away from the health service, can only have a drastic detrimental effect on someone.
‘Whatever her intention was in posting the offending tweet, it was short-lived, and she didn’t expect the violence that followed, and she quickly tried to quell it.’
Passing sentence Judge Inman said of the Southport stabbings: ‘Some people used that tragedy as an opportunity to sow division and hatred, often using social media, leading to a number of towns and cities being disfigured.’
Connolly was ordered to serve 40 per cent of her 31-month sentence in prison before being released on license.
Raymond Connolly declined to comment on the sentencing as he left Birmingham
Crown Court.
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