London:
British far-right figurehead Tommy Robinson was found in contempt of court on Friday, having live-streamed a confrontation with defendants in a criminal trial that was subject to reporting restrictions.
Two senior judges found he had acted in contempt when broadcasting footage of defendants outside Leeds Crown Court in northern England in May 2018.
Robinson denied any wrongdoing, saying he did not believe he was breaching any reporting restrictions and had only referred to information that was already in the public domain.
He live-streamed the footage while the jury in the second of a series of linked grooming trials was considering its verdict.
A reporting restriction postponed the publication of any details of the case until the end of all the trials, in a bid to ensure all defendants received a fair trial.
Judges Victoria Sharp and Mark Warby, sitting at the Old Bailey in London, England’s central criminal court, found Robinson in contempt.
Sharp said Robinson was in contempt by breaching the reporting restriction imposed on the trial, by live-streaming from outside the court and “aggressively confronting and filming” defendants.
The judge said the video “gave rise to a substantial risk that the course of justice in that case would be seriously impeded”.
She added: “In our judgement, the respondent’s conduct in each of those respects amounted to a serious interference with the administration of justice.” A hearing was provisionally set for Thursday to determine Robinson’s punishment.
Contempt of court carries a maximum sentence of two years.
Speaking afterwards to a crowd of supporters outside the court, Robinson said: “I’ve been convicted because of who I am, not what I’ve done.
