A Christian street preacher who was arrested after protesting Islam within the wake of the London Bridge terrorist attack in 2017 has had his appeal rejected by the High Court.
Ian Sleeper was arrested under Section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986 for causing “harassment, alarm, and distress” after displaying an indication that said “Love Muslims, Hate Islam, Jesus is love and hope”.
He was held for 13 hours before being released for free of charge. He later sued the police for wrongful arrest and false imprisonment but lost and appealed.
In its ruling on Tuesday, the High Court said his arrest was justified because of the chance of public disorder due to tensions following the 2017 attacks. The Christian Legal Centre (CLC), which supported Mr Sleeper in his legal motion, said there was no evidence of such a risk.
The CLC called Tuesday’s ruling “a concerning setback to the fitting of free speech” and alleged “two-tier policing” towards Mr Sleeper after officers didn’t take motion against pro-Palestine protesters calling for jihad against Israel during recent protests.
Mr Sleeper said the way in which he was treated was “completely incorrect” and that he plans to appeal.
“The police have never apologised and proceed to imagine that what they did was right,” he said.
“Recent events in London following the conflict within the Middle East has [sic] exposed that anyone protesting Israel and calling for violence wouldn’t be treated as I used to be by the police.
“There is not any consistency in policing over these matters and what has happened to me and on our streets previously month needs to be of grave concern to many.
“I’ll proceed to pursue justice on this matter for so long as it takes and am pleased to have the chance to appeal the previous ruling.”
CLC chief executive Andrea Williams said that police motion against Mr Sleeper was “disproportionate”.
“What happened to Mr Sleeper in 2017 has been prophetic for what we now see on London’s streets during pro-Hamas protests,” she said.
“The police have upheld the fitting for Islamic protesters to call for genocide without interference, and anyone who counter-protests and disagrees faces the complete force of the law.
“Ian explicitly said ‘love Muslims’ … How are you able to be free to criticise Islam in public if the words you mean and explicitly say are ignored within the courts?”
