4 years for saying 'hey let's riot here' on facebook

[reggie the dog]

even though no riot happened in the town, that is what happened to 2 men in the UK. 4 YEARS IN JAIL for people who did not even riot but simply posted on facebook. At least in the USA it is free speech to say 'Destroy Northwich so long as no one actually does it, but this person just said it to their friends list too, it was a private communication between them and their friends and they got 4 years in jail. Another young man got 5 months for stealing a package of bottles water valued at 3.50 sterling, about 6 dollars, and another woman got 6 months for wearing a pair of 20 pound 35 dollar shorts someone stole and then gave to her. this is insane. bankers can steal billions from us and walk free but a kid who stole bottled water valued at less than 7 us dollars gets 5 months firm in prison.

how many times will that young men be raped in prison over stealing a few bottles of drinking water.

i have to fly through the uk to get back to france next week, i put on facebook that i thought it was great to see rebellion around the uk, i shall see if they have a warrant for my arrest when i arrive at the airport.

[FiveGoodMen]

1. And zero years for attacking middle eastern countries that hadn't harmed us

Quite a double standard.

[reggie the dog]

2. how much for orchestrating a collapse of the economy and the

austerity that hurt so many people? oh right, that is legal and moral, but steal water to drink and you deserve 5 months in jail.

[Octafish]

12. ''You forgot Africa.''

Libya, Somalia and who the heck knows where else.

Most important thing: Outstanding point, yours, FiveGoodMen.

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. Lord Carlyle, one of the top jurists in the UK

has actually come out and said this is excessive. His reason, most people would be given cautions (warnings) for this in normal times and sees this as precisely the wrong response.

I happen to agree, but I am not surprised. Hell, I expected it.

[reggie the dog]

10. i hope they appeal

[malaise]

11. THey're lucky they weren't sent to New South Wales

:sarcasm:

[nadinbrzezinski]

13. Or the carolinas

:hi:

[Ozymanithrax]

4. Inciting a riot seems to have a different meaning under law there...

then it does here. Unless

Q. What does the charge inciting a riot mean and what will happen?

A. Under federal law, a riot is a public disturbance involving an act of violence by one or more persons who are assembled in a group of at least three people. The act of violence must be one that presents a clear and present danger of injury to another person or damage to another person\\\'s property. Threatening to commit a violent act in such a group situation that could injure another person or damage property is also considered a riot if one of the persons in the group has the ability at the time to carry out the threatened violence.
Inciting a riot applies to a person who organizes, encourages, or participates in a riot. It can apply to one who urges or instigates others to riot. It does not apply to someone who merely advocates ideas or expresses beliefs, if those ideas and beliefs do not involve advocating violence.

But even here, inciting a riot does not fall under freedom of speech. If someone urges a riot here, and a riot happens, that person could be charged with inciting a riot and sent to jail.

[reggie the dog]

5. if the riot happens

the men who called for riots in northwich and the other town did so in towns that had no riots. in other words they got 4 years in jail for advocating a riot that did not happen. in the usa if you call for a riot and it does not happen there is no crime.

[GKirk]

6. Are you sure about that...

" in the usa if you call for a riot and it does not happen there is no crime"

I don't know about riots but there are certainly crimes that you can
be charged with for planning a crime.

[reggie the dog]

7. if i type

let's go buy 10 dollars of marijuana i have committed the crime of conspiricy in the usa but that is because of the war on drugs, you can actually put people in jail for drugs who have not been found in possession of any drugs.

now as for calling for a riot, or calling for killing the president, you only get charged if someone does what you call for, at least in the usa.

[Ozymanithrax]

21. actually, that think you mentioned after calling for a riot.

You can go to jail for that, as it is illegal to call for that, and should you make that call you are likely to have an unpleasant visit from the Secret Service.

[Ozymanithrax]

20. Funny thing about the internet, it doesn't just run in their towns.

And, clearly, anyone that did that in this country would also be liable for prosecution, even if they don't live in the twon where the riot was incited.

[reggie the dog]

22. yeah but they called for riots in their towns and named them

also just sent out the message on facebook

[War Horse]

8. Overreactions like this

Will only bring more social unrest or even more riots...

I have no sympathy for the actions of those two guys, but four years is perverse.

It seems like there's a trend towards legislating, governing and sentencing from a sense of revenge and/or moral panic over this. It's worrying.

[reggie the dog]

9. if i understand correctly i have sympathy for these guys

i think they only posted things on their facebook page for their friends to see. one dude was drunk and said to friends 'riot in the town center' or something like that and then deleted it in the morning when sober, none of his friends did anything and probably thought he was sarcastic or talking drunk shit. no riots happened in their towns, none of their friends acted. they got 4 years for the equivalent of saying, 'lets go riot' at a house party at which their fiends all said 'calm down there buster'.

[War Horse]

14. That makes this ruling even worse, then

If that's the case.

[Quantess]

15. riot = burning & looting & violence

does it not?

[reggie the dog]

16. yes, but no one acted on what they said

they called for riots and burning in two places that had absolutely no problems whatsoever. that is where i dont get the jail time, they got busted for inciting a riot that didnt happen

[Quantess]

19. I do have to agree that 4 years is almost 4x too much time in jail.

I could understand a short stint in jail, but 4 years is ridiculous.

[Fire Walk With Me]

17. The very weak British government needs to appear strong so they are creating examples of what

happens when you dare oppose them.

Which only goes to show how afraid they are.

[ladjf]

18. This kind of oppressive move will only make it more likely that

others will riot. nt