Fashion designer John Galliano guilty of hate speech

Fashion designer John Galliano has been found guilty of making anti-Semitic insults at a Paris restaurant.

A Paris court today convicted Galliano of hate speech and handed him suspended fines totaling $8,400, the Financial Times reports. Galliano was not present as the verdict was read.

The suspended sentence took into account the apology Galliano made to his victims during a one-day trial in June, the Independent says. He must also pay court fees for the complainants, and a symbolic 1 euro in damages to the victims.

The British designer was fired by Dior over the hate speech incidents, which took place on October 8, 2010, and February 24, 2011, at La Perle cafe in the Marais district of Paris, the BBC says. 

He ranted at another patron at the restaurant for being Jewish, and also made racist insults at her friend, who is of South Asian origin. In a separate incident, an amateur video showed him drunkenly declaring a love for Hitler. 

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Galliano, 50, blamed drugs and alcohol for the racist outbursts, saying he had no memory of the events. He has denied being a racist.

"They are not views that I hold or believe in. I apologize for the sadness this whole affair has caused," he said at his court hearing in June.

Galliano said he had developed an addiction to alcohol, Valium and sleeping pills while working in the high-pressure world of fashion, and has since sought treatment.

Dior is currently looking for a replacement for Galliano, and declined to comment on the judgment, the FT reports.

Galliano had worked for the top fashion house for 15 years.