A suspended police officer who denied posting a “grossly offensive” message on social media yesterday asked to have the case heard in the Supreme Court.

Barbi Bishop, 43, said she wanted to opt for Supreme Court basis because the charge conflicted with her right to free speech.

Parts of her defence statement, submitted in Magistrates’ Court, relied on sections of the Bermuda Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights.

Ms Bishop pleaded not guilty on November 13 last year to posting a meme on Facebook and Instagram that read “All Lives Splatter. Nobody cares about your protest. Keep your a** out of the road”.

The meme was alleged to have been posted on June 3, 2020.

Ms Bishop, from Sandys, chose trial in Magistrates’ Court when she was first charged.

But Victoria Greening, Ms Bishop’s defence lawyer, said that the case would have to be heard in a higher court because it involved human rights law.

Ms Greening added she had filed a request to have the case heard in the Supreme Court yesterday.

Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo adjourned the case until January 22 to check if the request had been received by the Supreme Court.

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