Ryan MacDonald v. Procurator Fiscal, Glasgow [2012] HCJAC 133

Criminal Appeal Against Conviction:- The appellant was charged with a breach of the peace by posting a message of a threatening and offensive nature on the Twitter website. The message was "Lawwell needs a bullet. Simples" in reference to Peter Lawwell, the chief executive of Celtic Football Club who had made  comments about Rangers Football Club. On 26 April 2012 the appellant pled guilty and was sentenced to a Community Payback Order of 70 hours and to a 3-year football banning order in terms of section 51(4)(b) of the Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2006. The appellant appealed against the imposition of the football banning order on three grounds:- (1) that the order was incompetent as the statutory provisions do not extend to the circumstances of the offence; (2) that there were no reasonable grounds to believe that the making of a football banning order would help prevent violence or disorder at or in connection with any football matches; and (3) that if the order was competent and appropriate, the period imposed was excessive. It was submitted on behalf of the appellant that whilst the conduct was "football related" it was going too far to say that the behaviour related to "a football match"and the conditions set out in sections 51(4) and (6)(c) had not been satisfied. It was further submitted that there were no grounds to believe that the order would help to prevent violence or disorder at or in connection with a football match. It was also submitted on the appellant's behalf that the period selected was excessive having regard to the appellant's personal circumstances, in particular, his lack of previous history for causing trouble, he had co-operated with the police from the outset and he had expressed remorse. Here the court considered whether the circumstances of the case fell within sections 51 and 55 of the 2006 Act.