Lucy Connolly, a 42-year-old UK mother serving a 31-month sentence for inciting racial hatred in a social media post, has been denied temporary release to spend time with her daughter and sick husband, despite being deemed an "ideal candidate" for home leave by a prison expert.
Connolly was imprisoned in October after pleading guilty to posting inflammatory comments on social media following the Southport killings and has been eligible for Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) since November due to time served. The privilege is generally extended to non-violent offenders and those who are not considered escape risks or are subject to extradition.
According to The Telegraph, Connolly's bid for temporary release has stalled for over four months amid significant media attention surrounding her case. There has been no indication that she failed to meet the ROTL criteria. Connolly’s appeal for release cited her 12-year-old daughter’s worsening behaviour in school and her sick husband who suffers from bone marrow failure.
Her arrest stemmed from a post on X regarding the Southport riots in which she advocated for mass deportations, adding that fires should be set to asylum hotels “for all I care.” Connolly's posts were up for less than four hours, though this was long enough for someone to take a screenshot and for authorities to get involved, leading to her arrest.
"Mass deportation now, set fire to all the F***ing hotels full of the bastards for all I care, while you're at it take the treacherous government & politicians with them," she wrote.
"I feel physically sick knowing what these families will now have to endure. If that makes me racist, so be it," she added.
The post was viewed more than 300,000 times within four hours, after which she deleted it. However, she was later interviewed by police and three days later was charged. Connolly pleaded guilty and was sentenced in October.
A former prison governor, Ian Acheson, criticized the delay in processing her case, saying, “The apparent foot-dragging over consideration for release on temporary licence is concerning.”
“It can’t be right that someone who is otherwise eligible is not being considered because of either the prison’s failure to properly risk assess or her ‘notoriety.’ It would be perfectly possible for prison authorities to set conditions that precludes any media exposure,” Acheson said, per The Telegraph. “In my opinion, and given the offence details and the background to her custodial behaviour I have seen, she ought to be an ideal candidate for early release to allow her reintegration to start. Many more risky individuals are walking free as a result of Labour’s emergency mass release legislation.”
The Telegraph added that prison service sources denied the claim that Connolly's application for ROTL has been blocked, and said it was being considered by the Governor at HMP Drake Hall in Staffordshire, where Connolly has been transferred. A spokesman reportedly said, “Decisions on release on temporary licence and home detention curfew are made following uncompromising risk assessments to prioritise public safety.”
“These are discretionary schemes, and each case is rigorously scrutinised, considering the severity of the offence, the prisoner’s conduct and the potential impact on victims and the community,” the spokesman added.
Connolly is also appealing her sentence. Her barrister, Adam King, is expected to argue at a May 15 hearing that her offense was incorrectly categorized under inciting violence. If reclassified under different Sentencing Council guidelines, Connolly could have received a lighter sentence.
