A British judge who responded to a convicted racist’s taunt that she is “a bit of a c***” with “You are a bit of a c*** yourself,” is now facing a number of complaints. Judge Patricia Lynch QC will now likely face an investigation by the UK’s Judicial Conduct Investigations Office (JCIO), although her choice of words has seen her steeped in praise on social media.
Lynch was sentencing John Hennigan at Chelmsford Court for his ninth breach of an anti-social behaviour order when the heated exchange occurred. Hennigan, 50, replied from the dock to the judge’s retort with the phrase, “Go f*** yourself,” to which he was met with a cool “You too.”
A spokesperson for the JCIO revealed that the body had received complaints about Lynch’s comments in the courtroom, and that her choice of language will be investigated with regard to the official Judicial Conduct Rules 2014. The office did not reveal how many complaints it had received, but added that, as a rule, it never does.
Lynch sentenced Hennigan to 18 months in prison for racially insulting an Afro-Caribbean woman in Essex who was walking with her two children.
When the news broke about Lynch’s no-nonsense reaction to Hennigan’s taunts, many social media users took to Twitter in praise of her unusual approach:
Judge Patricia Lynch QC has a cracking reply to a racist thug in her courtroomhttps://t.co/bdQ5Vr4MWz
— Stan Keaton (@StanKeaton) August 10, 2016
Get Judge Patricia Lynch running the country. I would vote her in immediately
— Tom Dante (@Trader_Dante) August 11, 2016
Judge tells man 'you're a bit of a c*** yourself' as she jails him for vile racist insultshttps://t.co/yVpt8Vr6aB pic.twitter.com/9k4Vj7MIPu
— Daily Mirror (@DailyMirror) August 10, 2016
Patricia Lynch QC is in actuality a bit of a rockstar and has made my day 😎
— Sara Saab (@fortnightlysara) August 11, 2016
At last! A judge with some sense and drive.
Judge Patricia Lynch QC. A star is born. pic.twitter.com/olw1uyEMfJ— Andy Coates RPT (@AndyWoodturner) August 10, 2016
