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IS member Lisa Smith 'kept house' and jail sentence was 'excessive', lawyers argue
Summary
Former soldier Lisa Smith, aged 40, was convicted of membership of ISIS by the Special Criminal Court and sentenced to 15 months in prison. Smith travelled to ISIS‑controlled Syria in 2015, where she married, kept a house and did not participate in state‑building or positive acts for ISIS. Her lawyers argue that she was at the lowest level of the organisation, that she was a mother of a young child, and that she endured nine‑and‑a‑half months in two detention camps with harsh conditions. They also cite a report by Professor Anne Speckhard stating that Smith denounced ISIS and did not support its atrocities. The court, however, found that Smith knew of ISIS's bloodlust, discussed its atrocities online, and rejected calls to return. The Court of Appeal has reserved judgment, and Smith's lawyers plan to appeal her conviction later this year. The case was the first Irish conviction for an Islamic terrorist offence committed abroad.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: IS member Lisa Smith 'kept house' and jail sentence was 'excessive', lawyers argue. Charges or matters: membership of an unlawful terrorist group, Islamic State, between October 28th, 2015 and December 1st, 2019. Procedural stage: appeal. Findings: Convicted
When:
- October 28th, 2015 Hearing Or Sentence
- December 1st, 2019 Hearing Or Sentence
- 2022-10-04 Publication
Case subjects
Appellant
Charges: membership of an unlawful terrorist group, Islamic State, between October 28th, 2015 and December 1st, 2019 (Proven)
Finding: Convicted
Outcome: Convicted; Photo: Collins) Former soldier Lisa Smith, who was convicted earlier this year of membership of ISIS, was at the "lowest level" of the terrorist organisation and her sentence of 15 months was "excessive", her lawyers have told the Court of Appeal. Appealing the sentence, Michael O'Higgins SC, for Smith, told the three-judge court that his client went to ISIS-controlled Syria "got married, kept house and that's it." He said she went out of a religious conviction, "did not contribute to any state-building exercise and did no positive act in favour of Isis." He added: "There is nothing [in the evidence] beyond that she kept house for a man who did not even regard her as a person." Mr O'Higgins said that the Special Criminal Court, which convicted and sentenced Smith, did not give enough regard to the mitigating factors, including that Smit; The Court of Appeal reserved judgment.
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