Contempt case capital

THIRTEEN people were prosecuted for contempt of court in Londonderry between 2007 and 2009.

By The Newsroom

Published 12th Nov 2012, 10:33 BST

DUP MLA Lord Morrow asked the Minister of Justice David Ford how many people were convicted of wilfully insulting or contempt of court.

There were seven such cases in Londonderry in 2007; five in 2008; and one in 2009.

This was far more than anywhere else in Northern Ireland; there was only one case in Belfast. There were 11 in Antrim.

Mr Ford stated: “Contempt of Court and Misbehaviour in Court may be prosecuted under Article 160 of the Magistrates’ Courts (Northern Ireland) Order 1981 and the Contempt of Court Act 1981. (“Wilfully insulting” is a colloquial term and would be prosecuted as Contempt of Court.)”