Press Releases & Updates 2001

In Neath Magistrates in Wales Helen Harris had a means enquiry for unpaid fines for various deeds, one going back to 1999 when she cut into Faslane and roamed about a bit. Today she was given a prison sentence of 28 days, suspended for seven days to give her the chance to start paying by instalments.

Marjan Willemsen’s trip to Edinburgh Sheriff Court for the April Scottish parliament demo charge was rather wasted since the court ran out of time and she was adjourned to 18th December, but she she get a variation in her bail conditions - she can now go to the Scottish Parliament building again, always supposing she wanted to.

At Dumbarton Sheriff Court a visiting Sheriff, Ronald Smith, behaved rather badly. In fining Luud Appeltans and Harriet Jones £200 each for cutting into Coulport in August he said: "I look upon you so-called peace protesters as parasites, causing untold damage to fences, disrupting the base and wasting this country’s money which could be spent elsewhere."

Later he harassed and bullied Rona Couper who was up on a Big Blockade charge. He would not let her speak about the waste of money on Trident when the health service was starved of funds and when she attempted to argue from the Geneva Protocols he said: "We’ll no hear about the Geneva Convention. that’s got nothing to do with anything."When she said she would not pay the £200 fine he sent her straight off to Cornton Vale. She will be out on Thursday morning. We will complain to the Lord Advocate about Sheriff Smith.

It was also a Big Blockade day at Helensburgh District Court. On the bench was another prejudiced magistrate, Fraser Gillies from Rothesay.Five people were found guilty and variously fined: Bruce Craig from Edinburgh(£100); Glasgow poet Karen Thomson (£180); Anna Wright from Sutherland (£100 - she said: "I was there to protect all the things I love."); Rachel Milling, from Woodbrooke, the Quaker Colege (£200); Campbell McGregor (£150). Today JP Gillies seemed to be taking some account of people’s ability to pay, but his unique inconsistency was still in evidence.

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