Paulsgrove man 'caught up' in anti-migrant disorder at Eastney Point is jailed
“I am not sentencing you for your views on the police, the RNLI, or immigration,” the judge said.
A man involved in a violent clash with police after a migrant boat arrived in Portsmouth has been jailed.
On Sunday, September 6, a crowd of roughly 200 people clashed with authorities at Eastney Point, attacking police officers, and damaging Coastguard and Border Force vehicles, after a vessel carrying 114 migrants arrived in the early hours of the morning.
Following a police investigation into the incident, a number of people have been arrested and charged with violent disorder. Del Somerville, 42 from Walsingham Close, Paulsgrove, was charged with one count of violent disorder, and one count of assaulting a constable in the execution of their duty.
Having pleaded guilty to the former charge last week, and being remanded in custody, he appeared at Portsmouth Crown Court today (Thursday, September 24) for sentencing.
The court heard how he was accused of throwing a plastic bottle towards a police line and was heard telling officers to f*** off as the bottle was thrown.
The defendant had a boat moored in Eastney, and was unable to access it after police locked down the area, his lawyer said.
Somerville has two previous convictions, neither of which are for violent conduct.
The protest was initially peaceful, but turned violent following “online encouragement from public figures”, prosecutor Edward Warren said. Nearby residents were also affected, unable to sleep as the disorder ramped up, while protesters urinated in their gardens and attempted to get around the police cordon.
One neighbour got out of bed to check their home was fully locked, out of fear of property damage, Judge Daniel Sawyer was told.
Upon being arrested on Friday, September 11, Somerville told police that the protest was intended to be peaceful, and alleged that officers started the violence - claiming he was struck multiple times with a baton, and sprayed.
It was suggested that his involvement was “fairly minor” compared to others who have been charged in the aftermath of the unrest at Eastney Point. Judge Sawyer also noted that at the start of the bodycam footage capturing of Somerville’s violent disorder, he could be seen leading someone else away from the scene.
In mitigtation, his solicitor Helen Easterbrook said: “Unlike so many of these violent disorders, where people transport themselves across the country with a deliberate view to whip up disorder, he was caught up in it.
“One might have thought he should have gone back to the marina, but he was stopped from doing so by police. They have got no way of checking who is and isn’t legitimately supposed to be in the marina.
“It does not excuse why he took the actions he did. He was somewhat trapped in the area and unable to remove himself from this. That does not excuse the language he used.”
The court was also told that Somerville’s mental health medication has been withheld from him while in custody, causing him to only get a couple of hours of sleep each night.
Sentencing, Judge Sawyer said: “The right to peaceful protest applies to everyone, and to every cause, providing it’s not unlawful. It does not matter what anybody else may think of that cause.
“Equally, whereas here, peaceful protest turns into violence, it does not matter what the original cause was about. The right to peaceful protest does not apply to people who choose not to act peacefully.
“I am not sentencing you for your views on the police, the RNLI, or immigration. I am sentencing you for the disgraceful scenes at Eastney Point on September 6 - and nothing else.
“Importantly, you first made an effort to pull someone else away, and played a relatively minor role. Your situation was also somewhat different as you effectively live in Eastney Marina, and did not make your way over there to protest.
“There have been a number of other similar incidents in Portsmouth and Gosport on this matter in the following weeks. This offence is so serious that the only appropriate punishment is immediate imprisonment.”
Somerville was sentenced to two years in prison.