Joey Barton is found GUILTY of six charges over ‘offensive tweets’ aimed at female football TV pundits comparing them to Fred and Rose West

Former footballer Joey Barton was found guilty of sending grossly offensive social media posts about broadcaster Jeremy Vine and TV football pundits Lucy Ward and Eni Aluko.

A jury at Liverpool Crown Court found Barton, 43, ‘crossed the line between freedom of expression and crime’ with six posts he made on X, formerly Twitter.

He was cleared of six other charges of sending a grossly offensive electronic communication with intent to cause distress or alarm between January and March 2024.

The jury was told today that Barton was an “undiluted, unrepentant bully” and “not the free speech advocate he presents himself to be” before being sent to consider their verdict.

Far from being a “martyr” sacrificed “on the altar of political correctness”, the former Manchester City and Newcastle midfielder “devolved into behavior worthy only of trash”, according to prosecutors.

Barton, 43, was on trial accused of making 12 ‘grossly offensive’ tweets about female football commentators Lucy Ward (right), Eni Aluko and also broadcaster Jeremy Vine (left).

Prosecutors claimed Barton’s tweets, in which he likened Ward and Aluko to serial killers Fred and Rose West and labeled Mr Vine a ‘one-time bike’, were intended to cause distress and anxiety.

But before the jury retired, Barton’s lawyer told them that being able to say things that were ‘hurtful, offensive and in bad taste’ was a price worth paying to protect the ‘highly valued’ right to free speech.

Prosecutor Peter Wright KC told the jury in his closing speech that Barton was not tried simply because he used words considered offensive.

‘He is on trial because he crossed the line on each of these occasions,’ he said. ‘He crossed the line by a considerable margin and did so again and again.

More to follow.