Press Releases & Updates 1999

In finding no case to answer in an assault charge against Trident Ploughshares activist Angie Zelter, Justice Fraser stated: "A famous Queen’s counsel once said of a Crown case, ‘It was a frail bark that set sail towards the horizon, disappeared and was never seen again.’ This is what this case reminds me of."

In an attempt to apply for a formal pass to enter the base last November Angie had driven through the gates at Faslane. She was detained and charged with assaulting a police officer. Prosecution witnesses confirmed that at no point did Ms Zelter’s vehicle come into contact with the police.

Morag Balfour, 26, said: "This case should never have been brought. It has exposed the Ministry of Defence’s willingness to use malicious means to silence dissenters. Clearly they picked on Angie due to her high profile within the movement."

The inconsistency of the legal system was demonstrated again this morning when three other Trident Ploughshares activists were released without charge after cutting the fence at Coulport last night - charges appear to be trumped up or dropped at will. Despite this, the Trident Ploughshares campaign encourages the legal system to maintain its independence, uphold international law and refuse to criminalise anti-nuclear dissent.

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