Amos Yee given 4-week backdated jail term; blogger is 'remorseful', says lawyer

Teen blogger Amos Yee Pang Sang was on Monday (Jul 6) sentenced to four weeks' jail, backdated to Jun 2. 

Yee was found guilty of two charges - one for making offensive or wounding remarks against Christianity and another for circulating obscene imagery. A third charge, for the teen blogger's statements on the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew in a YouTube video, was withdrawn.

Yee was seen leaving court at about 5.20pm on Monday.

The 16-year-old intends to appeal against the convictions and the sentence, said his lawyer Alfred Dodwell.

"The journey here has been long and arduous, ridden with lots of obstacles and hurdles. We have somehow gotten here," said Mr Dodwell. "We have confirmed with our client that he wants to appeal against the conviction."

"Let's not run away with the idea that just because he's remorseful and stuff, that is in relation to the social context. Whether this was a crime or not, still remains a question we want to determine in the High Court," Mr Dodwell added.

"What's before us is the appeal. So we'll deal with the appeal and we'll let the High Court deal with this issue, as to whether the judge was correct in terms of the conviction and also the sentence," Mr Dodwell said.

The teen has also agreed to go for counselling, according to Mr Dodwell. "He is happy to cooperate now," he said.

A private doctor has agreed to take Yee under his charge and come up with mentorship programmes for him, as well as counselling for for the teen and his family. Yee is likely to start counselling sessions next week, his lawyer added.

The prosecution had asked for one day's jail for Yee due to a "seismic shift" in his attitude, "from being unremorseful to remorseful", a point which Yee's lawyers agreed. 

Yee has been remanded at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) for the past two weeks to assess his suitability for a mandatory treatment order, after a doctor said that Yee may have autism-spectrum disorder. However, a doctor at IMH said Yee did not have Autism Spectrum Disorder or any other mental disorder. 

The doctor's report noted that from an early age, Yee has been "trapped in the Net" and is "unable to discern untruths in cyberspace". The doctor's report also said Yee admitted to his guilt and promised not to reoffend, as he realised his actions were against the law and could disrupt social harmony. The teen also admitted he had used his intelligence in the wrong ways.

Mr Dodwell on Sunday night confirmed reports that the blogger was in hospital. Yee has "not been eating well, perhaps loss of appetite or no appetite, understandably so and hence his blood sugar went down," he said.

"I've not been told of a hunger strike," added Mr Dodwell, referring to the blogger's hospitalisation.

The court was packed for the sentencing at 2.30pm, with some turning up as early as 11am. Some of Yee's supporters clapped when he appeared in court. The teen was escorted by police officers and looked solemn, keeping his head bowed for most of the proceedings.

All in, Yee was remanded for 50 days, including time spent in Changi Prison and two weeks at IMH for assessment. 

Yee had previously rejected the option of probation and a term in the Reformative Training Centre as a sentence, sticking to his original plea for a jail term.