Boy Oh Boy George: Singer Sentenced to 15 Months

E! Online, Jan 16, 2009 10:00 am PST
Did they really want to jail him? Yes, as it turns out.

Boy George was sentenced to 15 months in prison this morning, two months after a British court found him guilty of falsely imprisoning a male escort by tying him to his bed and beating him with a metal chain.

In sentencing Boy George, whose real name is George O'Dowd, Snaresbrook Judge David Radford called the April 2007 attack on Audun Carlsen "shocking and degrading" and "so serious that only an immediate sentence of imprisonment can be justified."

The judge also said that while he was thankful Carlsen's injuries weren't "serious or permanent, in my view there can be no doubt that your premeditated, callous and humiliating handcuffing and detention of Mr. Carlsen shocked, degraded and traumatized him."

"He was deprived of his liberty and his human dignity without warning or proper explanation to him of its purpose, length or purported justification."

It came out in court last year that the 47-year-old '80s icon launched the attack on the Norwegian escort after he suspecting that Carlsen had attempted to hack into his computer to steal photographs.

The incident itself transpired after the Culture Club frontman hired the 29-year-old, whom he met over the Internet three months prior, for a naked photoshoot, during which both men took cocaine. An unnamed man was also present and allegedly helped Boy George carry out the beating.

The singer, who opted not to take the stand to defend himself during the trial and who pleaded not guilty to the charges, was convicted last month but allowed free on bail until today's sentencing.

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