Sudbury resident David Popescu gets 30 days in jail, probation for inciting hatred

David Popescu, a former federal and municipal candidate in Sudbury, Ont., was sentenced Wednesday to 30 days in jail and two years' probation for calling for the execution of former Ontario premier Kathleen Wynne for being gay.

Popescu, 73, distributed DVDs during the 2018 provincial election calling for the death of the then Liberal premier.

In September, Ontario Court Justice Heather Mendes found Popescu guilty of wilfully promoting hatred against homosexuals.

His recordings called for violence and urged people to put Wynne to death.

Popescu's freedom of expression is not protected when it promotes violence and invites people to act in a violent manner, Mendes said in her ruling.

According to court documents, Popescu had said he was convinced he was speaking and communicating the word of God about homosexuals to the public, and that God was condemning them to be put to death.

In 2009, Popescu was sentenced to a period of probation and a suspended sentence for calling for the execution of homosexuals. He also appeared in court in 2015 on a similar charge, but it was withdrawn.

He was also convicted of assault against his mother in 2003.