TOMMY Robinson will be freed from jail within days after showing a “change in attitude”.
The far-Right activist – real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon – was locked up for 18 months in October for contempt of court.
PATommy Robinson launched an appeal against the length of his sentence[/caption]
Robinson had made multiple breaches of an injunction in 2021, which barred him from repeating false allegations against a Syrian refugee who successfully sued him for libel.
His sentence was made up of a 14-month “punitive” element and a four-month “coercive” element.
This meant he could have the four months slashed from his jail term if he were to “purge” his contempt and show steps not to break the injunction that originally landed him behind bars.
In a ruling, Mr Justice Johnson said that there was an “absence of contrition or remorse” from Robinson, but that he had shown a “change in attitude” since he was sentenced.
He said: “He (Robinson) has given an assurance that he will comply with the injunction in the future, that he has no intention of breaching it again, and that he is aware of the consequences of what would happen if he breached the injunction again.”
Lawyers for the Solicitor General also agreed that Robinson had taken steps to adhere to the injunction.
The former EDL leader will now be back on the streets within the next week.
It comes after he previously launched an unsuccessful appeal against the length of his sentence when he was “segregated” from other inmates at HMP Woodhill in Buckinghamshire following threats to his safety.
His lawyers argued his time in prison was “making him ill” and that the segregation was having a “demonstrable effect”.
But barristers for the Solicitor General, who opposes the appeal, said there are “no grounds” for reducing the sentence.
The court was told there are fears Robinson will be assaulted or even killed by a “lifer” for “kudos” – hence the decision to move him to a closed wing.
A lawyer for the Ministry of Justice said at least two inmates were plotting to attack Robinson and that he had a “mark on his head”.
Robinson was jailed after admitting ten breaches of a High Court order made in 2021 by repeating false claims against a Syrian refugee.
The row first erupted in 2018 when a video went viral that showed Jamal Hijazi, a Syrian in West Yorkshire, being attacked by another teenager at school.
Robinson posted his own response this his one million Facebook followers falsely claiming that Jamal was a violent thug.
As a result, the teen and his family received a string of death threats and were later awarded £100,000 in damages after suing Robinson for defamation.
The court slapped the activities with an injunction that banned him from making the claims again.
But in 2023, Robinson lashed out at Jamal again and posted a video claiming he had been “silenced” by the state.
He re-showed the clip to thousands of his supporters in London‘s Trafalgar Square.
Jailing him, Judge Mr Justice Johnson said the breaches were not “accidental, negligent or merely reckless”.
He added: “In a democratic society underpinned by the rule of law, court orders must be obeyed.
“Nobody is above the law. Nobody can pick or choose which laws or which injunctions they obey, or which they do not.
“Even if they believe that an injunction is… contrary to their views they must comply with the injunction.
“They are not entitled to set themselves up as the judge in their own court. Otherwise the administration of justice and rule of law would break down.”
PARobinson has complained his jail segregation was making him ill[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
