A former Labour councillor who “trolled” Warrington North Labour MP Helen Jones with offensive and derogatory comments posted under articles on local news websites has been ordered to do 200 hours community service.
Paul Bretherton who represented the Rixton and Woolston Ward on Warrington Borough Council until he was de-selected in 2016 was also ordered to pay £990 court costs and compensation to his victim and subjected to a restraining order when he appeared for sentence at Liverpool Magistrates Court today (Monday).
He was ordered to do unpaid work in the community of 200 hours and to pay total costs to the court of £990. The court also directed him to pay £500 compensation to the victim of the offence.
He was also subjected to Restraining Order until 16th February, 2025, in the following terms:
•Not to contact the victim directly or indirectly via self servant or agent.
•Not to approach the victim directly or indirectly via self servant or agent.
•Not to post comments, writing or images about, or relating to, the victim or her family on any internet site, including any webpage, stream, comments section or social media.
He had been charged that between 24/10/2016 – 18/12/2018 at Warrington pursued a course of conduct which amounted to the harassment of Helen Jones and which you knew or ought to have known amounted to the harassment of her in that you made a number of public posts about her and her family on the Warrington Guardian and Warrington Worldwide websites, which were offensive, derogatory or untrue. Contrary to section 2(1) and (2) of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.
He denied the offence but was found guilty after a two day trial earlier this month.
When confronted by police Bretherton admitted posting as Billywires but said in his defence that he was just scrutinising the MP’s performance and never intended to cause any harassment or put the MP or her family or staff in fear of their safety.
As a Labour councillor he had worked alongside Ms Jones for almost 10 years but was de-selected in 2016 due to the Labour party’s decision to select more women. He told police he “felt shafted” at the time.
He said he had not intended to make Ms Jones feel threatened and felt he had the right to criticise his local MP under “freedom of speech.”
“I had no intention to make Helen Jones or her family feel threatened and if I did I would wish to make an unreserved apology.”
But in finding Bretherton guilty of the charges District Judge Jack McGarva said the postings went well beyond freedom of speech.
At a previous hearing Ms Jones told the court she had known the defendant since 2006 and helped him in his campaign to get elected to the borough council. Contact became less over the following years and ended when he was deselected in 2016.
She had no idea who was behind the derogatory posts under the name of “Billywires.”
”I felt someone was deliberately out to trash my reputation,” she said.
She told the court how she became increasingly anxious as the postings became more and more obsessive. It was as if someone had alert notifications every time she was quoted in the press. She was even mentioned under articles which had no reference to her. She felt like someone had a vendetta against her and feared where it could lead. There were also constant attacks on her family and office staff which included references to them being “5th columnist rats.”
Ms Jones said: “People have a right to disagree but no right to make things up and be abusive with attacks on me and my family and people who work for me.
“This kind of behaviour degrades politics and puts people off entering politics.
“It felt like I was being stalked online instead of in person.
“I was worried that this obsessive behaviour would tip over into something else so it made me very insecure. It was very wounding and offensive and I felt constantly under attack whatever I did. It was shocking that someone would go to so much trouble to post so many things which were untrue. It was twisting reality. At times I felt under siege.”
Former Labour Cllr. found guilty of “trolling” MP Helen Jones
