‘I don’t feel shame’: White supremacist Jacob Hersant found guilty of performing banned Nazi salute

Well known neo-Nazi Jacob Hersant has said he doesn’t regret his actions after becoming the first Victorian found guilty of performing the Nazi salute under newly introduced laws.

A white supremacist who has become the first Victorian found guilty of performing a Nazi salute says he will consider his appeal options after his constitutional defence was rejected.

Jacob Hersant, 25, performed the act on the steps of the County Court last October after he and Thomas Sewell, the self-proclaimed leader of the National Socialist Network, were sentenced over a violent clash with bushwalkers.

Magistrate Brett Sonnet on Tuesday found Hersant — who was the first Victorian charged under new legislation — guilty after rejecting his argument that the laws were unconstitutional because the Nazi salute was a legitimate form of political expression.

Outside Melbourne Magistrates’ Court, Hersant said he did not regret his actions and would consider his appeal options.

“I don’t feel shame for giving a political salute,” he said.

“Those are my beliefs.

“I am a Nazi.”

Jacob Hersant, pictured arriving at court with his mother, was found guilty of performing a Nazi salute. Picture: David Crosling

At an earlier hearing, Hersant’s lawyers claimed the charge was invalid under the constitution because the Nazi salute was a legitimate form of political expression.

They argued there was an “implied freedom” under the constitution which restricted laws related to political communication.

Hersant’s defence team also put forward an argument that the angle of their client’s arm and hand did not constitute a complete Nazi salute.

But Mr Sonnet rejected their arguments and ruled against them.

His ruling is expected to have flow-on effects for other similar cases.

Mr Sonnet only read out a brief summary of his judgement, which he said was 184 pages long.

Melbourne neo-Nazis Thomas Sewell and Jacob Hersant. Picture: NCA Newswire

Lawyers for the Victorian attorney general were parties to the case because of Hersant’s constitutional argument.

Wearing a blue suit, Hersant was seated in the front row of court next to his mother.

Hersant performed the act in front of media after he was spared further jail time over a clash with bushwalkers in Cathedral Range State Park.

The incident was recorded on camera and played in court, showing Hersant saying “heil Hitler” before raising his arm at about a 90-degree angle from his shoulder before dropping it.

“Oh, nearly did it, it’s illegal now isn’t it,” he said.

As he walked away, Hersant said: “Australia for the white man, heil Hitler.”

Jacob Hersant says he does not regret his actions in performing the Nazi salute, previously boasting that he performs the act daily. Picture: David Crosling

Dr Dvir Abramovich, the Chairman of the Anti-Defamation Commission who campaigned to criminalise the Nazi salute, said he was relieved by the ruling which dealt a blow to the neo-Nazi movement.

“This is not just a legal victory— it is a moral triumph that belongs to every individual who has suffered under the weight of oppression, and it belongs to every person who has ever felt threatened and targeted by this vile display of hate,” he said in a statement.

Outside court on Tuesday, Hersant was asked if he cared that most Australians were deeply offended by his views.

“They can be offended but I have my right to express myself politically,” he said.

He added he was not concerned about the prospect of jail and still performed the gesture.

The charge carries a maximum prison sentence of one year.

Hersant will return to court on Wednesday for a pre-sentence hearing.