A self-described Nazi on Tuesday became the first person convicted in the Australian state of Victoria of performing an outlawed Nazi salute.
Jacob Hersant, 25, gave the salute and praised Nazi leader Adolf Hitler in front of news media cameras outside the Victoria County Court on Oct 27, 2023, after he had appeared on a unrelated charge. It was six days after the Victoria state government had made the salute illegal.
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The Federal Parliament passed legislation in December that outlawed nationwide performing the Nazi salute in public or to publicly display, or trade in, Nazi hate symbols.
A Melbourne magistrate found Hersant guilty, dismissing defense lawyers’ arguments that the gesture wasn’t a salute and that the ban unconstitutionally infringed upon Hersant’s implied freedom of political communication.
Hersant is scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday and could face 12 months in prison and a fine.