As Mr David Alaba (https://www.tntsports.co.uk/football/champions-league/2019-2020/david-alaba-scores-incredible-own-goal-as-barca-bayern-explodes-into-action_sto7838270/story.shtml) experienced to his extreme annoyance, for a top professional footballer, scoring an “own goal” is horrible! One feels that one has let down one’s team mates! I have great sympathy for Mr Alaba.
I do NOT however have any sympathy for the UK’s Dear Leader – Kier Jong Starmer and his ministerial colleagues I had speculated in a previous post (https://british-gazette.com/it-is-very-much-to-be-hoped/) that Mrs Connolly would be freed on licence possibly on Friday 23 May 2025 – the Appeal Court reducing her sentence to two years custody causing her to have served 40% of her sentence. This it seems is not the case.
I have a very strong suspicion that this decision not to allow the appeal (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3v5926yeqro) was the one that it had been privately made known by unofficial intermediaries and sources to the Appeal Court judges that ministers did not want a reduction in Mrs Connolly’s sentence.
Before this decision, Mrs Connolly had attained the status of “political prisoner”. This status will now be enhanced. One of the things a convicted prisoner has to think about when sentenced and being led down to the cells under the court is what sort of reception they are going to receive from the other inmates of the prison they are being taken to!
This depends upon the crime the prisoner has committed. It also depends upon the makeup of the other prisoners. Mrs Connolly was fortunate being born a woman for the women’s prison estate does not have many of the problems of the men’s prison estate.
Immediately following Mrs Connolly’s harsh sentence there was much comment about the difference in punishment between a certain Huw Edwards and Mrs Connolly. Many commentators question as to why the former BBC newsreader did not receive an immediate custodial sentence.
The reason: Sadly the numbers of offenders such as the former newsreader is great. The numbers the authorities catch and convict is a small fraction of the actual number. The problem is that if the authorities were to catch and convict a great number of these offenders and imprison them all, the prison estate could not cope. You see, offenders such as the former newsreader present great challenges for the prisoner estate as these offenders are hated by the other inmates, inmates who are out to add their own punishment! As a result these offenders are sectioned off and guarded closely. Simply put, the prison estate does not have the resources to imprison many such offenders. Furthermore, the UK’s compliance with the ECHR means that the UK is under a legal duty to protect such offenders whilst in custody.
Offenders such as the former newsreader face problems in the community. Formerly respected, this individual will now face derision and scorn should for instance he go to Tescos or another supermarket to purchase something.
When she is released, Mrs Connolly is unlikely to receive the derision and scorn that the former newsreader receives whenever he shows his face in public! Quite the opposite in fact! Mrs Connolly will be regarded by many as a freed political prisoner.