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Joey Barton Given Suspended Six-Month Sentence Over Grossly Offensive X Posts

Jurors ruled six posts crossed the line from free speech into criminal abuse.

Overview

  • Barton received six months in custody, suspended for 18 months, following sentencing at Liverpool Crown Court.
  • He was convicted on six counts related to posts about Jeremy Vine, Lucy Ward and Eni Aluko and cleared on six additional counts covering January to March 2024.
  • One post likened Ward and Aluko to serial killers Fred and Rose West and used a doctored image placing their faces on the killers’ photograph.
  • Another post said Aluko was in the Joseph Stalin and Pol Pot category and claimed she had murdered millions of football fans’ ears.
  • Aluko said she feels vindicated and described fearing for her safety, while Vine’s statement called the conduct profoundly traumatising.