US citizen jailed for royal insult pardoned | Bangkok Post: news

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US citizen jailed for royal insult pardoned

BANGKOK - A Thai-born US citizen jailed for insulting the king has been pardoned by the monarch, in a case that drew a protest from the United States.

Joe Wichai Commart Gordon, whose Thai name is Lerpong Wichaikhammat, a car salesman from Colorado, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in December under the kingdom's strict lese majeste laws, which rights campaigners say are used unfairly to stifle freedom of expression.

Gordon "was granted a royal pardon yesterday", a senior Corrections Department official told AFP on Wednesday. Bangkok Remand Prison said he left the jail late Tuesday.

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  • LB

    Discussion 3 : 12 Jul 2012 at 08.393

    I do not think Joe has yet renounced his Thai citizenship. That means he is still holding both passports: Thai and U.S. which is against the immigration law for both countries. And more than likely, he entered Thailand with his Thai passport to avoid paying visa fees. By showing his Thai passport, he claimed himself as a Thai citizen when he entered Thailand.
    from iPhone application.

  • ringmaster

    United StatesPost : 745

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    Discussion 2 : 12 Jul 2012 at 02.012

    In Joe’s case the Thai government claimed jurisdiction over free speech performed by a US citizen from within US borders and on servers in the US. In essence, the Thai government made a legal act in the US illegal in Thailand. Is there a supra-national application of Thai law over the sovereignty of the US Constitution and rights to free speech? Slippery slope?

  • hawaiiman

    ThailandPost : 658

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    Discussion 1 : 11 Jul 2012 at 22.151

    I don't understand how Thailand can enforce Thai law on citizens of other countries, for those acts committed not on Thai soil.This is an encroachment on the sovereignty of that country. Does this set a precedent that any Thai citizen is subject to arrest for crimes of US or other countries law for acts committed inside of Thailand?

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