Teacher Sentenced to 15 Days in Jail for Teddy Bear Name
Updated: British teacher Gillian Gibbons has been found guilty of insulting religion for allowing her Sudanese students to name a teddy bear Muhammad. She was sentenced to 15 days in jail.
Defense lawyer Ali Ajab announced the verdict today at the end of her one-day trial, Reuters reports. He told the Associated Press he disagreed with the result. ”I feel this is very serious and very unfair,” he said.
Gibbons could have faced 40 lashes and six months in jail. The head of her defense team, Kamal al-Jazouli, said the result was “not bad.”
The incident sparked outrage by religious conservatives in Sudan, with members of Gibbons’ defense team receiving death threats.
“I am threatened, that’s why I’m carrying a gun in court,” said defense lawyer Abdel Khalig Abdallah, who during a break in trial opened his coat to reveal a revolver, according to the AP.
Gibbons will be deported upon her release.
Updated at 2:01 p.m., CST.
