Mr Hobson, on behalf of the appellant, expressly acknowledges that the Appellant deserves significant punishment for the offence which he committed. Mr Hobson does not submit that a sentence of imprisonment was wrong in principle. He does submit, however, that such are the mitigating factors in this case that we can take a course of action which is alternative to an immediate sentence of imprisonment. Mr Hobson invites us to impose a stringent community order or a suspended sentence of imprisonment coupled with appropriate punitive requirements. We should record that Mr Hobson expressly accepts that if a sentence of immediate imprisonment is the appropriate sentence a term of 56 days was not too long.
15. The mitigating factors which are pressed upon us are these. First, this offence was completely out of character for the Appellant. We have been provided with a selection of measured and moderate character references which suggest that this is so. Second, the Appellant has no previous convictions. Third, he pleaded guilty at the first available opportunity having earlier admitted his offence to the police officers who interviewed him. Fourth, the case has attracted a great deal of publicity. The Appellant has been the subject of harsh comment in some quarters and he has become a figure of some notoriety. Mr Hobson submits that this is a significant punishment in itself. Fifth, the Appellant is genuinely remorseful. We accept that all these points have a degree of validity. It is not suggested that this offence can be excused in any way by the fact the Appellant had consumed a great deal of alcohol.
16. There are no applicable sentencing guidelines. We have been referred to no previous decided cases either in the Court of Appeal or at the Crown Court to assist in determining an appropriate sentence for this type of offence.
17. We have reached the clear conclusion that a sentence of immediate imprisonment was justified in this case. The words used by the Appellant were extremely offensive. We accept that the express racial content of the words were not aimed, specifically, at the stricken footballer but there can be no avoiding the conclusion that the Appellant’s offence was committed in the context of the grave illness which had suddenly afflicted Mr Muamba.
18. It must also be emphasised that the Appellant has pleaded guilty to a crime of specific intent. He intended to use words which were offensive and he intended that the words should be racially offensive.
19. In our judgment, to repeat, a sentence of immediate imprisonment is justified in such circumstances even for a young man with no previous convictions and with the other personal mitigation available to this Appellant.