On April 26th 1995, Tim Spencer, a student from Cambridge, was fined £200 after being convicted of blowing a hunting horn with the intention of disrupting the barbaric pastime of foxhunting. In addition he was bound over to the sum of £200 for the period of two years.
Tim will appeal to the Crown Court, and hopes that his conviction will be overturned. The appeal has been set for November 14th and 15th.
On 5th November 1994, Mr. Spencer was among the first anti-hunt protesters to be arrested under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act, which had become law two days previously. All charges against the others arrested with him have been dropped.
Despite 80% of the public opposing the sadistic practice that Mr. Spencer was protesting against, parliament has refused to ban bloodsports. It is against this background that the Criminal Justice Act was introduced for the purpose, among other things, of criminalising anti-hunt protest.
Despite this blatant abuse of the so-called 'democratic' process, Mr. Spencer has said he will continue protesting. "The government should not be allowed to infringe on people's civil liberties, and the parts of the Criminal Justice Act designed to criminalise protest are merely the bloodsport lobby's last pathetic attempts to stifle opposition to their evil activities."
Cambridge Anti-Bloodsports have initiated an appeal for members of the public to donate towards the fine. In the event that the appeal against the conviction is successful, the donations will be used for the purpose of aiding other victims of the Act.