Katie Lam has launched a scathing attack on what she describes as "two-tier justice" from Labour in the Lucy Connolly case, expressing regret that Connolly felt compelled to plead guilty.
The 42-year-old former childminder was jailed in October after admitting to publishing threatening material on social media platform X.
Her post, made on July 29 last year, called for "mass deportation" and urged followers to "set fire to all the f****** hotels full of the b******s," referring to asylum seekers.
Katie Lam said that it is a "real shame" that Mrs Connolly pleaded guilty
|GB NEWS
Mrs Lam told GB News: "Well, what I think is a real shame is that Lucy Connolly pled guilty. We’ve seen similar cases for example, the trial of Labour councillor Ricky Jones, where people have gone before juries.
"Juries have recognised what most of us can clearly see to be true: that somebody said something horrible in the heat of the moment, and that’s not the same as a proper incitement to violence.
"I think it’s really sad and a real shame, and it’s a testament to how heavy-handed the Government was at the time that Lucy Connolly felt she had to plead guilty and has since served time in prison.
"I think the way the Prime Minister reacted to those protests, labelling everyone far-right and calling so vociferously for swift and very harsh sentences, while not doing the same in other contexts, is an example of two-tier justice."
The inflammatory message, posted on the same day as the Southport murders, was viewed 310,000 times within three and a half hours before being deleted.
Mrs Connolly, who is married to Conservative councillor Raymond Connolly, was arrested on August 6 after deleting her account.
Birmingham Crown Court handed Lucy Connolly a 31-month sentence for stirring up racial hatred.
Additional content was discovered on her mobile device during the police investigation.
Connolly walked free from HMP Peterborough on Thursday morning after serving the required 40 per cent of her sentence.
Lucy Connolly was jailed for a social media post | X
The mother is expected to give select media interviews on Friday, marking her first public statements since imprisonment.
Her first day of freedom was spent privately with family, including her councillor husband, their daughter, and her parents.
She was also reportedly spotted taking her dogs for an evening walk.