Penalty for hate speech
Supreme Court judgment 5 November 2020, HR-2020-2133-A, (case no. 20-097669STR-HRET), criminal case, appeal against judgment.
I. The Public Prosecution Authority (Counsel Magnus Schartum-Hansen) v.
A (Counsel Steinar Jacob Thomassen)
II. A (Counsel Steinar Jacob Thomassen) v.The Public Prosecution Authority (Counsel Magnus Schartum-Hansen)
Justices: Matningsdal, Webster, Matheson, Noer, Steinsvik
In a line in front of a snack bar, completely unprovoked, a woman had said the following to a young boy of African origin: "go back to Africa where you come from, fucking immigrant", and similar. The Supreme Court found that the statements were covered by section 185 of the Penal Code. The starting point was that discriminatory and hateful statements directed against an individual enjoy limited protection in terms of freedom of expression. In the individual assessment, the Court found that the statements were highly degrading and insulting, and entailed aggravated degradation of the boy's worth, with reference to his skin colour and ethnic origin. The penalty, which also included violence against the police, was 36 days of imprisonment of which 12 days were suspended. It was stated that an immediate sentence for the violation of section 185 of the Penal Code was too strict.