Prison time for insulting Dutch King

A 44-year-old man from Kampen was sentenced to 30 days in prison, half of which conditionally suspended, for insulting King Willem-Alexander. The court found the man guilty of deliberately insulting the head of state, NU.nl reports.

The man called the King a "murderer, rapist and thief" on Facebook and posted an edited photo of an ISIS execution in which the head of a prisoner was replaced by that of the King. The police came across the post while preparing for the royal family's visit to Zwolle on King's Day and arrested the man.

The Kampen man does not have to go back to prison because he already spent 14 days in custody. He was also given a 2 year probation period - the court found that there is a great chance of recurrence.

Deliberately insulting the King or his family falls under treason in the Netherlands and is punishable. Though the Prosecutor does not always prosecute given the fine line between insult and freedom of expression. Between 2000 and 2012 there were 18 treason cases, almost half of which ended in conviction.