The husband of a "keyboard warrior" who was jailed for making a Facebook post advocating for the destruction of a mosque claimed her sentence was "far too harsh."
David Sweeney, 76, said his wife of 29 years was not racist and that her outburst was the result of a "emotional breakdown" after the Southport knife assault.
Julie Sweeney, 53, of Cheshire, led a "quiet, sheltered life" before making the statement on her local community Facebook page in Kidsgrove, a court heard.
Speaking for the first time about the case, Mr Sweeney, a former RAF supplier, insisted the comment was out of character for his wife and suggested the punishment was “over the top”.
Breaking down in tears as he reflected on her sentence, he told The Telegraph: “It’s completely out of proportion, it’s just ridiculous. It’s a big loss, she’s my right arm.
“Three police cars turned up, there were three officers. What’s that about? It’s too big a force for what it was. It’s just crazy. It does anger you, it’s over the top, well over the top. It’s difficult, it’s hard to come to terms.
“She just got angry on the night because we watched a news item with her… it just wound her up because of what had happened to the three girls.“
The pair, who have been married for 29 years and live on the outskirts of a village, tried to delete the post within “a minute” of it being published but “couldn’t work out” how to delete it, Mr Sweeney added.
On Wednesday, the judge sentenced her to 15 months in prison, telling her that "even people like you need to go to prison".
He said: “She’s not that sort of person. We’ve got a neighbour next door who is Asian and he knows Julie is not a racist.
“We’ve got three granddaughters. It upset her, it wound her up. She just literally had an emotional breakdown.”
Following a post that showed white and Asian people involved in the clean-up from the aftermath of the Southport disorder, Sweeney posted on Facebook: “It’s absolutely ridiculous. Don’t protect the mosques. Blow the mosques up with the adults in it.”
Sarah Badrawy, prosecuting, told Chester Crown Court that one of the group’s 5,100 members became uneasy at a number of comments posted on the site in the wake of widespread violent disorder following the killing of three young girls in Southport on June 29.
Police were alerted about the post, which was later deleted.
When arrested, Sweeney, who is also David’s full-time career, told officers: “I’m not being rude, but there are a lot of people saying it.”
She said she posted the comment in anger, had “no intention to put people in fear” and conceded it was unacceptable and that she would be deleting her Facebook account.
Sweeney, from Church Lawton, Cheshire, pleaded guilty to sending a communication to convey a threat of death or serious harm, an offence under the Online Safety Act 2023.
Judge Steven Everett, the recorder of Chester, labelled Sweeney a “keyboard warrior” and jailed her for 15 months.
Sweeney’s family are understood to be horrified and shocked by the revelation, which they were only made aware of after sentencing.
One family member said: “All I can say is how shocked we are. I was gobsmacked when I heard the news.
“We only found out once Dave [David] called us once she’d been sentenced. What she said, I was shocked. I mean, she’ll post a little bit here and there, but nothing to that extent, and nothing hurtful.”
Asked if the sentence was harsh, she added: “Absolutely. There needs to be some sort of punishment, I’m not denying that but 15 months is quite a lot, considering other people do worse things and get lesser sentences.
“I think it was just an angry thing that she probably thought and just wrote down without thinking, didn’t think of the consequences of what she’d written.
“The family are in shock and of course heartbroken. David is on his own now.”
A spokesman for Cheshire Constabulary said: “Since the start of the recent disorder in other areas of the UK, we have been clear that we will not tolerate this kind of behaviour in Cheshire, including those who post abusive and threatening messages online.
“People may think that posting hateful messages on social media, instead of engaging in this sort of behaviour in person, offers them some sort of anonymity. But this could not be further from the truth.
“As this case demonstrates, there is nowhere to hide. If you choose to engage in this behaviour, whether in person or online, we will find you and you will be held responsible.”