Landlord fined £200 over malicious Facebook post which caused editor to fear attack
A hyperlocal news editor who feared his office and home could be attacked following a malicious Facebook post about him has urged more severe sentencing powers for offences targeting journalists after his aggressor was fined £200.
Michael Casey, who runs the Your Harlow and Your Thurrock websites in Essex, feared for his family’s safety after a man posted lies that he had been caught with thousands of indecent images of children.
Local pub landlord Karl Morris pleaded guilty on Thursday to sending a public online communication that he knew to be false and for the purposes of causing annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety contrary to Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003.