British student jailed for racist tweets

A student has been jailed for 56 days for posting offensive comments on Twitter about the on-pitch collapse of Bolton Wanderers footballer Fabrice Muamba.
Liam Stacey was arrested after his tweets were reported to police by Twitter users from across Britain, including the former England striker Stan Collymore. The 21-year-old admitted incitement to racial hatred.
He posted his offensive comments shortly after Muamba suffered a cardiac arrest during his team's FA Cup quarter-final tie against Tottenham Hotspur.
Stacey cried throughout the hearing and held his head in his hands when he was sentenced. He was led away in handcuffs.
District judge John Charles told Stacey: "It was racist abuse via a social networking site instigated as a result of a vile and abhorrent comment about a young footballer who was fighting for his life.
"At that moment, not just the footballer's family, not just the footballing world but the whole world were literally praying for his life. Your comments aggravated this situation.
"I have no choice but to impose an immediate custodial sentence to reflect the public outrage at what you have done.
"You committed this offence while you were drunk and it is clear you immediately regretted it. But you must learn how to handle your alcohol better."
Following Stacey's original posts, other Twitter users criticised him strongly. This prompted him to post a series of offensive and racist insults, some of a sexual nature, aimed at those who had attacked him.
In mitigation, Gareth Jones, defending, said: "The first comment [he] wrote was in relation to Fabrice Muamba. He does not bear him any grudge and he is glad he is making a good recovery. My client simply lost his head and posted these disgusting comments to both the bitter shame of himself and his parents."
Jones said Stacey feared his university career was over: "He is no longer welcome at the institution because he has damaged their reputation and there are fears of reprisals."A British man has been jailed for 56 days after he tweeted racist comments after a soccer player collapsed during a game.
Liam Stacey, 21, admitted to posting the comments on Twitter after Fabrice Muamba collapsed during a FA Cup came.
During the game on March 10, Stacey tweeted, "LOL, F--- Muamba. He's dead!" When people complained, he reportedly responded with racist comments to other Twitter users.
On Tuesday, a judge sentenced Stacey to prison, calling the tweets "vile and abhorrent," the BBC reported
Muamba, 23, suffered a heart attack on the field. He remains in hospital in serious but stable condition, his team, the Bolton Wanderers, said in a release.