Convicted Hunt Supporters

 

Ian Randell, the son of The Badsworth Foxhounds huntsman, was convicted of actual bodily harm to a Sheffield sab.

Supporter of the Enfield Chase Foxhounds, George Adair convicted of criminal damage to a sab vehicle and ordered to pay a £100 fine and £60 costs. On a charge of assault on sabs the jury were unable to come to a unanimous decision so the judge decided for them, finding Adair not guilty despite the evidence of six sab witnesses, a detective constable, a sergeant, an inspector and a superintendent regarding his alleged violent behaviour.

Martin Philips 'sympathies' towards the hunt were so inflamed by the sight of two HSA sweatshirts, that he attacked the people inside them, leaving one requiring stitches to his face. Philips was fined £325, and ordered to pay £25 to each of his victims, as well as £19 damages for breaking a pair of spectacles.

Maurice Bell who is the Master of the Wensleydale Foxhounds convicted of assault and actual bodily harm on two saboteurs, one of which he knocked unconscious and left needing stitches. A female sab was also dragged over a barbed wire covered wall. Bell was fined a total of £150.

Andrew Smith, a senior civil servant with the Dept. Of Agriculture, his daughter Lorna and son Derek, all members of the Linlithgow and Stirlingshire Foxhounds along with Andrew Crowe and Malcolm Dick, were all convicted of charges of breach of the peace and assault. Each of the five was fined £400. They also had a failed appeal.

Supporters of the Puckeridge Foxhounds, Ronald Edwards and his son Steven, bound over for a year by the sum of £200 after an incident in which a sab was beaten unconscious. Another hunt heavy was also fined £100 with £303.41 costs and compensation for damage caused to a saboteur's car, when he crushed it with his own.

William Bolton, Paul Hawkes and David Lynne, supporters of The Tynedale Foxhounds, all bound over to keep the peace for 2 years in the sum of £200, after a vicious and unprovoked attack on a Tyneside sab. Bolton also admitted a further charge of criminal damage for which he was fined £50 with £24.41 compensation.

Roger Howarth, a whipper-in for The Linlithgow and Stirlingshire Foxhounds found guilty of damaging a cb radio belonging to Edinburgh sabs. He was ordered to pay the group the princely sum of £10 for a new one.

Albrighton Foxhounds Huntsman, Nigel Cox, convicted of firearms offences and given a 3 year suspended prison sentence after he blew a hole in the radiator of an occupied sab minibus with a shotgun. He was also given a conditional discharge for assault (he had struck a sab with the gun) and criminal damage to a camera. No damages were paid to sabs.

South Dorset Foxhounds Kennelman Nicholas Stevens and two of his friends all bound over to keep the peace after an incident when 3 sabs were cornered in a field and attacked.

Paul Connolly attacked a sab with a pickaxe handle, beating him while he lay on the ground. Fined £500 for assault.

Paul Willingale was sentenced to 6 months in prison for a vicious attack on Eddie Coulson who was attending his first sab at the Waterloo Cup hare coursing event. As a consequence Mr Coulson, who needed emergency surgery to remove bone splinters & a blood clot, suffered a fractured skull & is left afflicted by epileptic fits.

Thomas Smith and Jeffery Cook, supporters of The Bicester and Whaddon Chase Foxhounds bound over for 1 year for breach of the peace after an incident which left the back window of a sab's car completely smashed. The prosecution dropped charges of criminal damage and section 4.

Robert Rous, Master Of Hounds and David Trotman, Kennel Huntsman of The Waveney Harriers both bound over to keep the peace after an incident when a hunt saboteur had to be taken to hospital following repeated lashing from a riding crop. The C.P.S. attempted to drop the case after medical evidence was 'lost', and witnesses weren't called.

Denis Lough-Scott, a Heythrop Foxhounds supporter fined £50 for actual bodily harm on a hunt protester.

Neil Coleman, First Whip And Kennel Hand Of The Cottesmore Foxhounds, fined £300 and £10 cost after knocking an old lady off her bike, breaking bones and failing to stop, whilst driving the hunt fleshwagon back from an evening down the pub.

Allan Summersgill

Edward Vickery of The Quantock Staghounds, convicted of assault after riding down and attacking a saboteur. Fined £600

Duncan Branch, a subscriber to The Chiddingfold, Leconfield And Cowdray Foxhounds found guilty of attacking 2 saboteurs with his fists and a riding crop. Fined £400 with £250 costs and was ordered to pay £50 compensation to each of his victims.

Mark Evans, whipper-in to The Hampshire Hunt, loses a private prosecution brought by a saboteur he had beaten with his whip. Found guilty of assault.

Bloodsports fanatic Jim Newbury Street jailed for nine months after planting a bomb under his own landrover in an attempt to discredit sabs.

Francis Momber, the Former Master Of The Hampshire Hunt, given a conditional discharge and ordered to pay £175 compensation for smashing the windows on three sides of a saboteur's vehicle. Flying glass cut the drivers hand and another occupant's mouth.

Justin Ellis, Matthew Jones and Charles Peach, all supporters of The Chiddingfold, Leconfield And Cowdray Foxhounds, found guilty of affray after Ellis rammed the back of a sab landrover, and Jones And Peach attacked it, breaking several windows. Ellis was fined £400 and banned from driving, while the others were each fined £250.

Holderness Foxhounds Huntsman, William Deakin, convicted of criminal damage to a sab van and given a conditional discharge.

Gary Whelbrand, an Albrighton Foxhounds supporter, found guilty of fracturing a saboteur's jaw in two places and perforating his eardrum, after Whelbrand jumped the sab from behind, dragging him to the ground in an unprovoked attack. He was convicted of ABH, and was fined £250 with costs and £75 compensation.

Atherstone Foxhounds supporter convicted of assault and fined £200, with £138 costs and £60 compensation.

Vale Of White Horse Foxhounds Whipper-In, Matthew Calcot was ordered to pay £130 compensation and was bound over for a year for the sum of £100 after the windscreen of oxford HSA'S van was smashed.

The South And West Wilts. Foxhound's Kennelman sacked after being convicted of section 4 of the public order act. He had violently rocked a sab's car with people inside. He was also convicted of drink driving at the time.

Stephen Thayne, Whipper-In To The Chiddingfold Foxhounds, convicted of assault and battery after riding down a group of saboteurs. Given one years conditional discharge and ordered to pay £170 costs.

New Forest Terrierman, Keith Colbert and hunt supporter Adrian Bungay, both given conditional discharges after a hunt saboteur was attacked during a meet of the hunt. At the time of writing Colbert is wanted by police for an alleged racial attack on a mixed-race hunt monitor.

Nigel Trevithick-Wood, husband of an Old Surrey And Burstow Foxhounds Joint Master, received a 6 month suspended sentence for punching a sab in the face at a cubbing meet. In a related incident 1st whipper-in (now huntsman) Mark Bycroft was also found guilty of assault and ordered to do community service.

Keith Nobbs, New Forest Foxhounds Terrierman and Nick Stevens (again), South Dorset Foxhounds Kennelman, both fined £200 for criminal damage to a sab vehicle. The car, with sabs inside it, had been overturned at a meet of the South Dorset Foxhounds.

John Funnell, Master Of The Surrey Union Foxhounds found guilty of ABH on Brixton saboteur. The sab needed stitches to a serious head wound and was left scarred for life after Funnell rode his horse over him twice. He was given a 2 month prison sentence, suspended for 2 years.

Kenneth Banks, foot follower of The Old Surrey And Burstow Foxhounds received a 12 month suspended sentence for punching a saboteur in the groin.

Francis Momber (again) found guilty of criminal damage to a Portsmouth sab landrover. He was given a 1 year conditional discharge and ordered to pay £500 costs and £175 compensation.

2 followers of The South Dorset Foxhounds convicted of criminal damage after over-turning a saboteur's car - with sabs inside it! They were ordered to pay compensation to the car's owner

Hunt supporters Adrian Bungay (again) and Keith Corbett (again), both given conditional discharges for 1 year after an attack on two Southampton saboteurs. Both men had to pay costs and compensation to their victims.

Quorn Foxhounds employee Timothy Taylor found guilty of possessing an unlicensed shotgun. Fined £100 with £37 costs.

Pro-hunt farmer, Mark Fuller, attacked an Anglia TV reporter out with local saboteurs, at a cubbing meet of the west Norfolk Foxhounds. After assaulting the reporter, fuller proceeded to destroy two video cameras and smashed a van's windscreen. He was convicted of affray and 3 counts of criminal damage. He was ordered to pay £1050 in fines, £1463 in compensation and £150 costs - a total of £2663.

Richard and Thomas Cheshire, both hunt marshals, found guilty of affray and assault causing actual bodily harm after they attacked a car containing observers, smashing the windscreen before overturning the vehicle down an embankment. Two of the passengers were repeatedly punched and an attempt was made to drag one man through the broken windscreen. They were fined a total of £2049, including £100 towards the repair of a damaged video camera.

Richard Cheshire, (again) and Bicester and Whaddon Chase Foxhounds Kennelman, Michael Smith both sent to prison for 2 months after a sab was pushed in front of a speeding quad bike. The case was successful because for the first time, sabs had video footage of the incident.

On the 3rd of April 1993, Tom Worby was crushed under the wheels of the Cambridgeshire Foxhounds hound van. No action was taken against the driver of the hound van huntsman Alan ball.

William Howells, forestry commission worker and supporter of The New Forest Buckhounds found guilty of smashing a video camera belonging to The New Forest Animal Protection Group. Ordered to pay £443 compensation and given a 12 month conditional discharge.

Kenneth Mansbridge, a supporter of The Hursley Hambledon Foxhounds, convicted of unlawful wounding on a green party researcher, who needed hospital treatment for serious head wounds after being kicked and beaten by a group of hunt followers 1991. Mansbridge admitted kicking the victim in the groin and punching him to the ground. (on the same day, another protester was beaten around the head with a spade, and left needing 10 stitches and a 6 and a half months pregnant woman was hit on the head with half a brick, needing 4 stitches). Mansbridge was sentenced to 140 hours community service and ordered to pay costs of £150.

John Stride, a rider with the New Forest Buckhounds, found guilty of assault on a saboteur (with his whip). Also convicted on a related charge of criminal damage. Fined £25 for the assault with a further £25 for damaging a map.

Christopher R G Nichol, hired steward, admitted assault on a female Pickering hunt sab, who suffered cuts and bruises. Fined £370 after admitting in court that he 'lost his temper'.

Edward Lycett-Green of the Portman Foxhounds, was given a 12 month conditional discharge for criminal damage. Originally 5 hunt followers including Lycett-Green were charged with various charges of affray, violent disorder, assault and theft after an incident when a blocked-in sab landrover had its windows smashed, a camera was smashed and stolen and the occupants, including a local reporter, were attacked. Unbelievably, at the trial the cps refused to offer any evidence for the affray and violent disorder charges and only Lycett-green was convicted. Patricia Harris, a rider with the Portman Foxhounds, convicted of criminal damage to sab property and given a conditional discharge.

Roger Wakefield, Essex and Farmers Union Terrierman, given 160 hours community service after being found guilty of violent disorder and affray against saboteurs. Hunt supporter, Bryn Chittenden was also convicted of the same offences and given 120 hours community service.

A supporter of the Cumberland Foxhounds attacked a photographer with a spade handle, after the photographer took the balaclava-wearing thug's picture. He was fined £200 for assault.

The chairman of the Essex Foxhounds and two of his hired stewards paid a total of £1053 in damages to three L.A.C.S. officials, after the stewards had forcibly removed them from land. The L.A.C.S. people were pushed around and threatened by the hired thugs.

Paul Martin attacked a sab repeatedly at a joint meet of The South Dorset Foxhounds and the Cattistock Foxhounds. He pleaded guilty to ABH and was only given a conditional discharge, as no medical evidence was given.

Andrew Pearce head-butted the camcorder being used by a L.A.C.S. monitor because he mistook him for a sab. The monitor receives bruises and a swollen lip as a result. Pearce was convicted of assault and given a 2-year conditional discharge.

Bramham Moor Foxhounds supporter Raymond Walker attacked saboteurs with a scythe!, Leaving two with head wounds, and a van's windows smashed. He was convicted of affray along with two other hunt Supporters Mr & Mrs Winstanley, and criminal damage. All three were given community service orders.

Leading supporter of The Surrey Union Foxhounds, Noel Cahill, arrested in November after an attack on saboteurs left one hospitalised. Police searching his home found a death threat ready to be posted to the HSA press officer

Anthony Kirkham, supporter of the Cheshire Foxhounds, received a 12 month prison sentence (suspended on appeal) for attacking a lone female sab who had gone to get help after the sab van had been attacked by hunt heavies. When Kirkham caught up with her, he beat and kicked her to the ground. More on him later.

Amateur Whip Of The New Forest Foxhounds, John Mitchell found guilty of careless driving after sandwiching a Southampton saboteur between a van and a landrover, running over the sab's foot and hitting him with the wing mirror. A police officer witnessed the incident. Fined £180 and £150 costs and 7 penalty points on his licence.

John Edward Wedmore, Terrierman For The Mendip Farmers Foxhounds found guilty of 3 counts of assault after he launched an attack on three L.A.C.S. monitors. (unbelievably, a L.A.C.S. monitor's tabard was shown to the court to prove that the monitors could not have been mistaken for hunt saboteurs - implying that Wedmore might have had justification for attacking sabs!)

Adrian Thompson was found not guilty of being involved in an attack on Dorset HSA's van while they were attending a meet of the Crawley and Horsham Foxhounds. Two sabs had been subjected to a furious assault and the van had been pushed into a ditch and its windows smashed. During the trial Thompson seemed to lay the blame firmly on a mysterious acquaintance 'Wayne' who has never been traced.

Surrey Union Foxhounds Supporter, Gary John Moore, pleaded guilty to two charges of common assault and affray after an unprovoked attack on local saboteurs outside a pub. At the time of his arrest police had to drag him off his victim, who had already been beaten to the ground. Even while he was restrained Moore attempted to kick the saboteur in the head. He was fined £500

David Woolley, Joint Master Of The Cheshire Foxhounds, cautioned after making a 2am phone call to the NW regional rep. Of the L.A.C.S. he was said to have threatened 'I'm going to kill you, bitch!'

3 supporters of The Vale Of Clettwr Foxhounds bound over to the keep the peace for a year after an incident when a sab van was surrounded and the driver dragged out and held upside down. Terrierman Emyr Davies and supporters John Galmore Jones and John Geraint Owens denied violent disorder and the theft of 6 items of sab equipment.

Christopher Rooke (37) of Newton-on-Ouse, North Yorkshire who is an amateur terrierman with the York and Ainsty South Foxhounds was fined £750 with £60 costs by Easingwold magistrates after admitting interfering with a badger sett. The incident happened during a meet of the York and Ainsty South. A local landowner who had fenced off an area of his land which contained a badger sett, felt the fewer people who knew about the it the better. However, later that day the landowner noticed the fence had been broken down and somebody was digging up the sett. Rooke who has 20 years experience an amateur terrierman did not believe it was a sett, he thought it was a rabbit warren, and was told there was a fox down it and it was his job to get the fox out. Mr Darwin, mitigating said: "It wasn't his intention to harm the badger or the sett and he has expressed his remorse".

On 9/8/96 Penrith magistrates found Edwin Russell Dickinson (38) of Town Head Road, Cotehill, Carlisle, who is the terrierman for the Cumberland Farmers Foxhound guilty of interfering with a badger sett by causing a dog to enter it, and Peter James McColgan (30) of The Kennels, Welton, Dalston, who is the amateur huntsman for the Cumberland Farmers Foxhounds guilty of aiding and abetting Dickinson in interfering with a badger sett by causing a dog to enter the sett. The magistrates heard that the Cumberland Farmers were out hunting near Penrith when McColgan found that a fox had gone down a hole, he then called over Dickinson. The holes were then blocked and some nets were put over other entrances, a terrier was then entered the holes. Both men admitted in interviews that they had put a terrier down but said the contentious issue was whether they were signs of the sett being an active one. After a trial lasting nearly three days the magistrates found the pair guilty and they were fined £150 each with £250 costs.

Wooton Bassett magistrates heard how Richard Lovett (41) of Meysey Hampton, Cirencester, Gloucestershire blocked up a sett in readiness for hunting the following day. Lovett is the terrierman for the Vale of White Horse Foxhounds, based at Meysey Hampton. Lovett (who is also a former gamekeeper and Gloucestershire Area Representative for the Fell and Moorland Working Terrier Club) gave evidence for five hours, during which he totally denied having done anything wrong and said he had followed the Masters of Foxhounds Association rules diligently. Many witnesses were called in an attempt to persuade the court that blocking up the sett entrances with lumps of wet, heavy clay did not conflict with the Protection of Badgers Act, which dictates that if earth is used it must consist of 'loose soil'. The trial lasted for 6 days after which Lovett was found guilty and fined £100. Lovett appeared at Swindon Crown Court to appeal against his conviction for illegally blocking a badger sett. The Crown Court rejected his appeal and decided that Lovett had committed the offence.

A hunt supporter of the Seavington Hunt who trespassed on a railway line was caught on camera and reported to the police by a member of League Against Cruel Sports. Yeovil magistrates heard on 8/8/96 how Bernard Martin (58) of New Close, Haselbury Plucknett, Somerset was filmed walking along the track with a number of others during a meet of the hunt. In his defence Martin said "He had been led to believe that checks had been done and no trains were running on that day. He had been doing what he did that day for many years. Ignorance of the law is no excuse but no-one ever stopped him". Martin was given a 12 month conditional discharge and ordered to pay £20 costs, a charge of trespass against his son Paul Martin (32) was dismissed at the request of the prosecution.

Dean John Richards (36 ) of Glebelands Villas, Bishops Nympton, Devon pleaded guilty to two charges of assault at Tiverton magistrates on 20/9/96. The court were told how two LACS sanctuary officers were monitoring the Tiverton Staghounds. During the day Richards had thrust himself through their car window, both the monitors inside were hit around the face and one video camera was damaged. In court, Richards claimed he had been given the task of getting between the hounds and the stag to stop them attacking it. Magistrates fined Richards £50 for each assault with £69 costs and ordered him to pay £25 to each of the victims.

On 25/10/96 John Mitchell (56) of Outlands Lane, Curdridge, Hampshire was found guilty of careless driving by New Forest magistrates. The court was told how Mitchell, who is the amateur whipper-in with the New Forest Foxhounds had sandwiched a hunt sab from Southampton between a van and a Land Rover. The incident happened when a sab was standing close to the side of a Land Rover when Mitchell drove past, the front wheel went over the sabs left foot and the wing mirror hit his shoulder, it was at this point when he was sandwiched between the two vehicles. The Southampton sab suffered a badly sprained ankle and other injuries. A police officer on duty at the time of the incident said other vehicles had found room to pass comfortably. Mitchell also claimed in court it was a "set-up". The court imposed a fine of £180 with £150 costs and had seven penalty points put on his driving licence.

Joanna Mary Scott (28) of Higher Cooksley, Upton, near Wiveliscombe, Somerset, daughter of Diana and Maurice Scott who are the joint masters of the Devon and Somerset Staghounds, was found not guilty by Minehead magistrates on 8/11/96 of chasing a stag with a Land Rover to stop it entering a sanctuary. Scott had denied the offence. She told the court she was following the deer to see where it went, and to prevent trespass by hounds onto sanctuary land.

Nicholas Grooby (22), of Paradise Lane, Old Dolby, Leicestershire (an unpaid terrierman for South Nottingham Foxhounds), Gary Pearson (34) of Souldern Way, Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, David William Edwards (48) of Roughcoat Lane, Cavershall, Stoke-on-Trent and Mark John Hulme (33) of Ash Grove, Rode Heath, Stoke-on-Trent were all found guilty by Nottingham magistrates on 15/1/97 of attempting to take a badger, digging for badgers and interfering with a badger sett. The court heard how they were spotted by a local gamekeeper who had watched them digging at a well known badger sett. One of them had a dog locator scanner while another was poking a large metal spike into the ground. On 20/2/97 they were all sentenced to four months for attempting to take a badger, two months for digging for badgers and two months for interfering with a badger sett. All sentences are to run concurrently. They were also banned from keeping animals for 5 years. Following the appeal in July they all had their sentences reduced to 120 hours community service plus costs of either £400 or £500.

Alan Owen (48) of Glandwr Gwynfryn, Llanbedr, Gwynedd has lost his appeal for the revocation of his firearms licence. Owen, who is the Master/Huntsman of the Nantcol Valley Foxhounds, first appeared in court in March 1996 after he was accused of punching, kicking and threatening a farming neighbour. The court was told how Owen had threatened his neighbour with a knife after he had shot and wounded a hound which was trespassing in a field of sheep. At the time he admitted common assault, but denied the knife threat. The court ordered that his firearms certificate be taken away. In September 1996 he appeared at Caernarfon Crown Court to appeal against the revocation of his firearms certificate. The court heard he possessed a shotgun, but not used it since he was twelve, two rifles and a handgun. The local police opposed the appeal on the grounds that he was, in their opinion 'not a fit person to possess firearms'. (In November 1993 Owen was convicted of unnecessary suffering to his pet lurcher by Blaenau Ffestiniog magistrates, he was fined £450 and had to pay costs of £2,227, he was also banned from keeping dogs for a year).

On 8/5/97 Leonard Durman-Walters (57) of Hyndlee, Bonchester, Scotland will stand trial for bird cruelty charges. Durman-Walters of the Scottish Academy of Falconry appeared before Jedburgh Sheriff Court on 10/4/97 accused of releasing a live cock pheasant at Falside on 18/9/96, which was taken and killed by a trained bird of prey under his control. He is also accused of causing unnecessary suffering and terror on the same day to a captive tethered pigeon, by using it as a live lure to attract birds of prey.

New Forest Foxhounds kennel huntsman Paul Woodhouse (46) of Romsey Road, Lyndhurst, Hampshire was described in court as Mr Cool lost his temper and struck a League Against Cruel Sports member with his whip. Lyndhurst magistrates heard on 23/4/97 how Woodhouse did not have a blemish on his character and had endured numerous provocative incidents over the years. However, when he was out with the hunt the court heard how he rode his horse at the LACS member and struck him twice across the head with a whip resulting in him ending up on the floor. At the time the LACS member was filming a fox being dug out after it had gone to ground. Woodhouse was said to be in pain after falling from his horse earlier on in the day was described as a very cool character, however, he could only remember striking only one blow. Woodhouse admitted common assault and was fined £75 and ordered to pay costs of £35 and £40 compensation.

A haulier was sentenced to four months in prison and banned from keeping any animal for five years after becoming the first man ever to be caught unlawfully transporting a live badger. Desmond Joseph Mackin (43) of Castle Lodge, Banbridge, County Down, Northern Ireland (formally an official representative of the Fell and Moorland Working Terrier Club) pleaded guilty to charges of possession of a badger and ill-treating a badger at Darlington magistrates on 6/10/97. Mackin was arrested by Durham police after being stopped in his lorry. Police requested RSPCA assistance after discovering a live badger tied up in a sack in the back of the lorry. Mackin had travelled to County Durham from Northern Ireland. An inspector of the RSPCA's Special Operations Unit, who assisted Durham police, said: "This is an extremely important case. It confirms our suspicions that badgers are being dug out and transported elsewhere for baiting. The badger was found tied up and covered in mud in the middle of the loaded wagon and we believe it had been driven all the way from Northern Ireland to be baited over here". The badger was later found to be pregnant and after recovering from the ordeal gave birth to three cubs. After rehabilitation, the sow along with all the cubs were successfully released into the wild in the South of England.

A Master Of The Cotswold Vale Farmers Foxhounds cautioned by police after an indecent assault was made on a young female saboteur.

Stephen Barnes, a rider with The South Notts Foxhounds, found to have deliberately ridden over a female saboteur, breaking her elbow and causing severe bruising, in a civil case brought by the saboteur. She was awarded £2,500 compensation. Barnes was apparently 'banned' from riding with the hunt after the incident in 1993.

John Charles Kneale (58) of Westminster Drive, Bromborough, Wirral (terrier man for the Cheshire Foxhounds) and Peter Edge (28) of Hilbre Bank, Alpraham, Tarporley, Cheshire both walked free from Northwich magistrates on 31/10/97 after magistrates decided there was no case to answer over allegations of badger digging. Both were charged with disturbing a badger sett and causing a dog to enter a badger sett after the Cheshire Foxhounds had passed over the land earlier the same day. The farmer who owned the land said "I was approached by Kneale, he said a fox had run to ground during the hunt and would it be all right to dig it out. I gave him permission. I didn't know they were going near where the badger sett." They were then seen digging at the sett by forest workers, who then rang a badger protection group to report them.

Robert Venner (30) who is a farmer from the West Country was ordered to pay £4,000 compensation to the League Against Cruel Sports after a practical joke went wrong. Apparently Venner tried to pinch a flag from the L.A.C.S. stand at the 1997 Devon show, however, he found himself in trouble when he smashed an awning and broke a windscreen.

Elaine Boddington (36) of Stonehouse Lane, Peckforton, Cheshire (who is a member of the Cheshire Foxhounds) was found guilty of driving without due care and attention at Chester magistrates on 11/9/97. Boddington, who works for a public relations company called Written Image denied the offence. However, magistrates heard how a former traffic policeman was waiting to pick up his wife in the middle of Chester when he saw Boddington return to her car, which was parked between a Rover and a Maestro. The car only had a four feet space behind it. He then watched as she reversed sharply knocking into the bumper of the Maestro, pushing it down the road for about two feet, she then drove straight off. When interviewed by the police she repeated several times she had not had an accident. Boddington also added "This may be a malicious allegation because of my high profile activities with the Cheshire Hunt. My vehicle registration is very well known". Magistrates fined her £200 with £200 costs and awarded her five penalty points. The court also heard she already had six points on her licence.

Farmhand Glen Norman (27) of Beverley, East Yorkshire was jailed for two-and-a-half years for wounding by Hull Crown court on 5/1/98. The court heard how he had punched Michael Wingfield Boyce (55) of Long Lane, Beverley, huntsman with the Holderness Hunt, while Boyce was on the ground Norman kicked him in the head, breaking his nose, cheekbone and blacking both eyes. The trouble erupted after Boyce's lover Libby Merryless (37) and Norman's wife Alison were seen fighting like wildcats on a stable floor. The court heard how Boyce had seduced Alison when she was 17 and began a 10-year affair with her. They both launched an equestrian business but fell out when she found him kissing her best friend Merryless. Alison Norman (28) of Wood End Farm, Rise near Long Riston was given 150 community service after admitting assault.

Builder John Black (41) from Holmfirth, West Yorkshire admitted assaulting gamekeeper John Hollingworth (52) at a social evening of the Pennine Foxhounds at Millbrook, Stalybridge. On 23/1/98 Ashton under Lyne magistrates fined him £150 with £150 compensation.

On 4/2/98 a fox hunt was cleared over allegations that it damaged a protected badger sett during an incident in which a pack of hounds swarmed through a country park. Police have decided to take no action against the Morpeth Hunt following an investigation into the incident. Police launched an investigation into allegations that a badger sett was damaged during the incident in which the huntsmen had to remove the hounds from the country park, where hunting is banned.  Northumberland County Council launched its own probe after claims the hounds chased foxes through the park three times in two hours. Hunting is not permitted in the park but there is an agreement that huntsmen can go in and remove hounds if they run into the area while chasing foxes. The agreement states that the hunt should retrieve their hounds as quickly as possible without disturbance to visitors or wildlife. 

The huntsman of the Shamrock Harriers was fined £100 for cruelty to hounds in his care. The huntsman, claims that the hounds were 'knackered' after a hard season was not accepted by the court. (C.W. 20/2/98)

The Pytchley hunt have been fined £5,000 and ordered to pay costs of £820 for causing poisonous, noxious or polluting matter to enter a watercourse, after blood from animal carcasses drained into surface water drains rather than foul drains. Richard Payne, the hunt's secretary and representative pleaded guilty to the charge. This is similar to an incident in 1996 when the West Norfolk Foxhounds were fined £5,000 with £449.29 costs after admitting knowingly permitting pollution of a stream.

Three men who threatened members of the South Dorset Anti-Blood Sports group at a hunt meeting in Somerset were sentenced by Yeovil magistrates. Bernard Martin (59) of Haselbury Plucknett, his son Paul Martin (33) of Dinnington, and Gordon Martin (51) of Haselbury Plucknett pleaded guilty to using threatening behaviour towards hunt protesters at a meet of the Cattistock Hunt. The court ordered Paul Martin to serve 80 hours community service and pay compensation of £50. Bernard Martin was fined £70 and Gordon Martin was given a six-month conditional discharge.

Rodney Ellis who is the joint master of the Tedworth Hunt escaped a driving ban after blaming his wife's riding injury. Ellis (57) from Malborough, Wiltshire told Kennet magistrates on 1/5/98 how he drove home because his wife had fallen of her horse earlier in the day and could not drive home from a hunt dinner. One of the magistrates Lady Belinda Johnston (wife of Wiltshire's Lord Lieutenant General, Sir Maurice Johnston) said "You had just cause in driving because this was a sufficient emergency". When he was stopped by police Ellis was arrested after he refused to give a breath sample. However, he later agreed to provide on, which showed he was nearly twice over the legal limit. Magistrates imposed a fine of £450. Ellis appeared before Devizes magistrates after an Appeal Court ordered him to be re-sentenced. On 10/12/98 he was disqualified from diving for three years after police found he was twice over the legal limit. 

Simon Williams (31) who runs the kennels of the South Devon Foxhounds was given a one-year conditional discharge and made to pay costs of £125 for threatening a hunt saboteur, but was cleared of charges of common assault and using a bar as an offensive weapon.

The joint master of the Duke of Beaufort Captain Ian Farquhar (53) appeared at Avon magistrates on 20/10/98. He pleaded guilty to allowing Cypermethin, which is used to treat mange in the hounds at the Beufort kennels to enter the river Avon. The pesticide killed around 10,000 endangered white clawed crayfish in the river.

Joint Masters of Crawley and Horsham Hunt, Anthony Sandeman (41) of Coombe Lane, Bolney, West Sussex and Philip Ghazala (40) of Shipley Road, Southwater, near Horsham intend to appeal against a court's decision finding them guilty of damaging a hunt protester's vehicle. Ghazala and Sandeman denied a charge of criminal damage to protesters car when they appeared at Mid Sussex Magistrates Court on 28/9/98. The incident happened after the protester and his partner monitor a hunt. The Crawley and Horsham Hunt had been cancelled and they travelled to the Petworth Hunt instead in another vehicle. When they returned later they noticed two males down the side of their vehicle. "One was standing up and looked as though he was writing on the side. The other one was behind him. When they were spotted they "hurried away very, very quickly" He said there was scratching along the near-side panel of his car and the paint was still blistering and flaking and the nearside tyre had been let down. Taped interviews with Ghazala and Sandeman were played to the court. Ghazala, managing director of Horse Health Products UK, said he and Sandeman had driven to Kent on that day for a hound parade, because the Crawley and Horsham Hunt had been held a day earlier. Sandeman had received information that there were "saboteurs" gathering in the area. Ghazala said he drove down the lane on his way back from Kent at approximately 4 to 4.30pm, where he let Sandeman out to "relieve himself" and to note down the registration numbers of any cars parked along the road. He stated that he never left the vehicle. Sandeman a farmer, said that they recognised the approaching car and so they drove off. The prosecution asked both men: "You were caught red-handed and that is why you are here today, is it not?" The reply of both men was: "No." Magistrates fined Sandeman £300 with £250 costs and had to pay £58 compensation. Ghazala was also fined £300 with £250 with compensation.

Clive D Wenham, Joint Master Of The Bolebroke Beagles convicted of assault and abusive behaviour on a 63 year old woman, when she encountered the beagles on a road. Wenham coshed the woman over the head with his whip, knocking her to the ground. He was fined £1000 for the assault and £600 for the abusive behaviour.

Anthony Kirkham a Cheshire Foxhounds supporter was jailed for his part in what the judge described as the 'cruel beating' of a L.A.C.S. monitor. The man was chased across a field, sprayed in the face with a liquid, hit over the head with a bottle and repeatedly kicked in the head when he fell. Kirkham told the man, 'we've got you now; you're dead' as he pulled him to his feet and ripped a camera worth £1,300 from his neck. Kirkham was jailed for 15 months.

Paul Martin and his father Bernard Martin convicted of affray and Paul's uncle Colin Martin convicted of section 4 after they broke into the back of a sab van and attacked the occupants with spades and wooden staves. A sab photographing the event was dragged from the van and beaten while the family of thugs tried to remove his film.

Simon William's Kennelman Of The South Devon Foxhounds, bound over for a year after being charged with threatening behaviour towards a sab (the kind of threatening behaviour that involves a 5 foot metal pole.)

The Huntsman Of The North Norfolk Harriers, Boyce Keeling successfully convicted of assault on a local saboteur, whom he beat with the handle of his whip.

Supporter of the Dunston Harriers, Patrick Everett managed to get the hunt banned from one village after he viciously attacked a party of 1 man, 2 women and four children who had stopped to watch the hunt pass by. He was fined £800.

Two hunt supporters who attacked a League Against Cruel Sports (LACS) cameraman filming a staghunt were jailed as an example to others. John William Bere (25) of Bishop's Nympton, near South Molton, Devon, and Dean John Richards (38) of Bish Mill, South Molton, punched a anti-hunt supporter during a meet of the Quantock Staghounds at East Quantoxhead then took his video camera. They pleaded guilty at Taunton Crown Court on 15/1/99 to assault and theft and Richards was sentenced to six months jail while Bere was given a four month sentence. The judge heard how a wing mirror on the LACS members car was damaged while he was parked and colleagues told him Bere and Richards were responsible. When he approached them, Richards became aggressive and told him to turn of his camera. As he looked down, he felt a blow to the right side of his face and fell to the ground. When he got up he was struck on the other side and the camera was tugged from around his neck as he fell. Both men denied any offence at first and Richards said the LACS member had it in for him. Bere said he had never been in trouble before but had momentarily lost his temper and had lost his job as a result. He intends to continue supporting the hunt but a lesson has been very well learned. Richards said he was a countryman "through and through and hunting has been one of the most important things in his life. He has been a follower of the hunt for all of his adult life and allowed his love of hunting to rule his head." He also admitted he had been involved in another incident with the LACS member in 1996.

A farmer has been found guilty of driving his Land Rover at a group of hunt protesters. Sampson Smith (45) of Church Lane, Ashington denied aiming his vehicle at the protesters. On 15/1/99 Chichester Crown Court heard how a police officer had witnessed the incident. He said Smith had sped at a group of protesters then shunted back and forth at the group of 30 people before getting out and brandishing a cane above his head. The jury convicted Smith of dangerous driving and was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay costs of £1,184. He was also banned from driving for 12 months and ordered to retake a driving test before going back onto the road.

Georgina Blundell of Pasturo farm, Stadhampton, Oxfordshire who is a member of the Vale of Aylesbury Hunt was cautioned by the police following an incident with an anti-hunt protester. The incident happened at a her farm when Blundell hurt the protester with her horse.

Spokesperson for the Irish Masters of Foxhounds Association James E Norton appeared in court on charges under the Control of Dogs Act. During an incident in February 1997 when the South Westmeath Harriers went out of control 12 sheep were killed and eight were injured.

An experienced gunman accused of blinding a grouse beater on a shoot has been found not guilty of wounding. Bradford Crown Court heard on 16/9/99 how Graham Hill from Bury had been beating when a bird was flushed out. Ian Brearley from Ramsbottom fired as it flew towards the group. The trial was halted when the judge ruled there was insufficient evidence against him.

Geoffrey Allen (45) of The Pry, Frith Common, Menith Wood, near Bewdley used to produced articles for bloodsport magazines until he was jailed on 2/9/99 for four years after admitting buggery, indecent assault and gross indecency. The offences were committed against two 13-year-old boys.

On 14/2/00 the master and three other members of the Vale of Clettwr Hunt were cleared of interfering with a badger sett by destroying it. Hunt master David Lyn Lloyd (47) of Blaenpant Farm, Pencader and terriermen John Geraint Owen Thomas (48) of Gwarbistgwynwydd, Maesycrugiau, and Gethin Jones (46) of Gardde, Cwmdwyfran and foot follower John Gareth Jones (64) of Golygfa, Heol Gilfachwen, Llandysul had encroached without permission on to forestry land. Gethin Jones who said he had 30 years' experience as a terrierman, dismissed a prosecution suggestion that he had disturbed an active badger's sett and said he had walked around the area and had not seen any signs of setts. John Geraint Thomas said, "I have been a terrierman for over 30 years and there is no doubt in my mind that this was not a badger's sett. I know there are active setts in the area but we couldn't see these from where we were."

At West Somerset magistrates on 12/5/00 Anthony Richard Wright, a huntsman of Exmoor Foxhounds pleaded guilty to an offence under the Specified Risk Material Order 1997 of feeding to hounds parts of a bovine carcase which contained SRM. Wright, who has been cautioned for a similar offence in September 1997, was fined £500 and ordered to pay £567 costs.

On 11/11/00 at Kidderminster magistrates Messrs James (a huntsman) and Mallard (a joint master of hounds) each pleaded guilty to two charges brought by Hereford and Worcester County Council of inadequate separation and staining of SBM contrary to the SBM Order. Mr James was fined £500 on each charge and ordered to pay £2,000 costs (total £3000). Mallard was fined £1,000 on each charge with £5,000 costs (total £7000).

Three men who were employed by one of Prince Charles' favourite hunts appeared at Leicester Crown Court on charges relating to violent attacks on hunt saboteurs. Dean John Ironmonger (39) from Wysall, Notts; Kenneth Scott Rumph (22) from Willoughby-on-the-Wolds, Leics and Paul John Tomlinson (40) from Clifton, Nottingham faced on a range of charges relating to an incident which occurred at a meet of the Quorn Foxhounds on the 4/3/00. All three were employed as hunt stewards on the day. Sadly on 23/1/01 all three were cleared of attacking hunt sabs after a judge ruled court regulations had been broken. The case collapsed following legal arguments over abuse of process relating to the disclosure of photographs and video footage taken at the hunt. Tomlinson had denied assault occasioning actual bodily harm in relation to one saboteur. Ironmonger and Rumph had denied affray. Rumph was also charged with dangerous driving. 

Huntsman Jonathan Broise (45) of Petworth, West Sussex, has been barred from becoming master of the Chiddingfold, Leconfield and Cowdray Hunt after being convicted of butting a disabled magistrate and punching another man at a point-to-point meeting. Horsham magistrates were told on 18/2/01 that Broise attacked Michael Halford, a company manager, in a hospitality tent and turned on Philip Everest, who walks with crutches, when the magistrate tried to intervene.  

On 26/3/01 the huntsman of the New Forest Foxhounds was sent to prison for 8 weeks after being found guilty of assault following a trial at Lyndhurst magistrates. The case related to attack on a passing motorist in which Paul Woodhouse, huntsman with the New Forest Foxhounds since 1998, punched a motorist in the face during an incident at the hunt kennels. Giving evidence in court the Master of the New Forest Foxhounds stated that a custodial sentence may lead to the closure of the hunt, as the hounds only responded to Woodhouse, and that as exercising the hounds was now curtailed due to the Foot & Mouth outbreak no-one else could deal with them.

On 14/10/98 Tot Goodwin, Joint Master and Master of Foxhounds and huntsman for the Green Creek Hounds (N.C.), and Chip Anderson, huntsman for the Tryon Hounds (N.C.), pleaded guilty to illegally transporting foxes across state lines. Goodwin and Anderson bought 22 red foxes in South Carolina from federal undercover agents. It was reported that the two huntsmen were seeking to ensure good hunting at the week-long multiple-hunt joint meet. Their purchase was a misdemeanor violation of the Lacey Act, which prohibits interstate transportation of illegally taken or possessed wildlife. The law's purpose is to prevent the spread of such diseases as rabies, distemper and parasites. On 12/3/99 the American Masters of Foxhounds Association fined both hunts $1,000, placed each hunt on suspension for six months, and reduced them from recognised to registered status pending re-inspection by the MFHA. Goodwin and Anderson were each fined $700 and given two years probation. Charges are still pending against a third huntsman who allegedly bought 10 foxes. The MFHA's executive director, said that his investigation showed the huntsmen were trying to repopulate an area that had been depleted by disease. "The MFHA found no indications that any of the huntsmen were 'dropping' foxes," he said. "Since this investigation, the MFHA has found out that foxes cannot be released into the wild in most states, no matter how they are obtained. There are no provision to restock healthy foxes into diseased areas or in catastrophic situations where populations have been diminished."

A huntsman who tried to stop a woman filming him after his horse died of a heart attack in Hartfield, pleaded guilty to causing actual bodily harm and damaging a video camera. Jonathan Wilkinson (38) from Powder Mills, Leigh, was given a conditional discharge and ordered to pay £50 costs and £550 compensation at Lewes Magistrates on 26/4/01. He admitted trying to stop a 58-year-old woman from Brighton from filming him when his horse collapsed and died during an Old Surrey, Burstow and West Kent Hunt meet. Wendy Peckham, spokesperson for the Countryside Alliance, said: "Jo did let his emotions get the better of him but apologised readily at the time and was given credit for his guilty plea in court. "Hi will be riding with the hunt in the future as these were extreme circumstances and in normal conditions he is a perfect gentleman.

A huntsman was cleared of assaulting a hunt saboteur who grabbed a fox to protect it from hounds. John Hazeltine (32) of the East Devon Hunt was acquitted at Exeter magistrates court on 20/11/01 of attacking a hunt saboteur during a meeting of the hunt at Crammer Barton, near Cullompton. The saboteur told the court that he saw the fox being "bitten and mauled" by some of the pack so grabbed it by the scruff of the neck and lifted it up. "The fox immediately bit me on the hand, through my thumb," he said, adding that he then crouched in the hedge and tried to cover the animal with his body. He then felt blows on the back of his head, and was bitten on the hand by some of the pack. He then claimed that Hazeltine had stamped him, and punched him in the back of the head, and the fox escaped from his grasp.

T wo hunt employees accused of interfering with badger setts by the RSPCA have had the case against them dismissed. Gary Edwards who lives on the Milton Estate, near Bretton, Peterborough and Cyril Smith Oakham, near Stamford both work as terriermen for the Fitzwilliam Hunt, had been accused of illegally blocking the holes or damaging a sett. But on 29/10/01 they were acquitted at Peterborough magistrates after the RSPCA said it did not have enough evidence to carry on. George Bowyer, joint-master of the Fitzwilliam Hunt, which is based at Milton Hall, near Bretton, Peterborough, said the RSPCA had never had a case against the men and condemned its decision to bring charges. My men have always been innocent but their names have been blackened.

Anne Hull (40) of Maldon Road, Burnham was found guilty in of aiding and abetting interference with a badger sett. But Chelmsford Crown Court overturned the conviction at an appeal hearing on 2/11/01 after ruling there was no direct evidence linking Hull with the blocking of a badger sett. The court heard how Hull was a joint master of The Essex Farmers and Union Hunt when the six-hole badger sett was partially blocked by earth-stopper and terrierman Bryn Chittenden.

A hunt master was handcuffed by police after she drove away from a hunt breakfast more than three and half times over the limit Northampton Crown Court on 23/4/02. Charlotte Wilson-Smith (39) threatened to punch a police officer in the face when he arrived with two colleagues at her farmhouse after receiving reports that she was driving dangerously. Minutes earlier she had been seen falling out of her car by a driver who followed her home after seeing her straying into the opposite lane and mounting a grass verge. The court was told that when the police arrived at Wilson-Smith's farmhouse they found her trying to climb over a barbed wire fence into a field. When asked to return to the courtyard, she replied: "I will punch you in the face in a minute," the court heard. After she insisted on walking off to attend to a horse, she was handcuffed and arrested. Wilson-Smith, Master of the Oakley Hunt, admitted a charge of dangerous driving. The jury heard Wilson-Smith was making her way home from a hunt breakfast held at Newton Bromswold point-to-point racecourse. Wilson-Smith said she had taken part in a sponsored bike ride to raise funds for the hunt before attending a hunt breakfast. She said she had a couple of glasses of sparkling wine but later discovered someone had been topping up her glass. She agreed she had been drinking Bucks Fizz. "With hindsight I should not have driven," she told the court. She said she had driven cautiously with a bicycle on a rack on the back of her vehicle. At the junction, she thought she had time to pull out. Wilson-Smith said: "I heard a bit of a screech. I looked in the rear view mirror and the van was very close. I remember I was being followed and that is why I may have put my foot down a bit more. I was a little bit concerned because I thought I was being followed by a hunt saboteur. I got out and told him to clear off because it was private property." Inside her house, she said she drank some German beer and added she was "petrified" when she saw the police arrive. She said that was when she tried to get over the fence and found herself being handcuffed. Asked why she had threatened to punch a PC she replied: "I was quite frightened. Policemen were running after you and all I was doing was trying to catch a horse." She was later found to be three and a half times over the limit. The jury took 30 minutes to find Wilson-Smith guilty of dangerous driving. She then admitted driving with excess alcohol. Recorder Andrew Tidbury adjourned sentence for reports. He asked for a medical report because of Wilson-Smith's high alcohol reading. During the trial the court heard she had been taking antidepressants at the time. At Northampton Crown Court on 29/5/02 Charlotte Wilson-Smith of Poplars Farm, Wymington, Northants, burst into tears and wiped her face with a tissue as a judge sentenced her to three months in prison. She was also banned from driving for three and a half years. She was found guilty of dangerous driving and admitted drink-driving after she was found to be three and a half times over the limit.

An unemployed gamekeeper was given a 6 month conditional discharge and ordered to pay costs at Corby Magistrates court on 3/5/02 after he pleaded guilty to smashing a hunt saboteur's CB radio. Mr W. Playford was arrested at a meet of the Woodland Pytchley hunt at Stoke Albany where he was acting as a hunt steward. A hunt saboteur had been trying to stop the hunt chasing a fox when he was punched to the ground by another man, dropping the CB. It was then that Playford deliberately smashed the radio. Whilst hunt saboteurs welcomed the guilty plea, they were disappointed to receive no compensation for the radio, which will cost around £100 to replace. They were also concerned at the light sentence and the fact that no action has been taken over the assault that took place that day. Hunt Saboteurs Association spokesperson, Nathan Brown said, "Yet again hunting has shown its true nature. Non-violent tactics of hunt saboteurs save animals' lives and are frequently met with attacks and aggression from the bullies in the hunting fraternity. This hunt has a reputation for the violence meted out to protesters. David Reynolds, Master of the Woodland Pytchley hunt, is a prominent member of the Countryside Alliance, who have now threatened a 'summer of discontent' showing total disregard for the democratic process. I fear we will see more attacks on peaceful opponents of hunting."

A cornish huntsman who admitted to causing unnecessary suffering to his hounds said that foot and mouth restrictions had contributed to his inability to feed them properly. Stephen Heard (45) of Padstow, was banned from keeping animals for ten years after magistrates at Launceston heard on 18/6/02 how two pregnant beagles were found dead at his kennels with no food or water. A previous conviction had already banned Heard from keeping cattle. Heard, a part-time dairy worker who kept the hounds on an "informal" basis, pleaded guilty to three counts of causing unnecessary suffering to two beagle bitches and a beagle puppy which was confiscated by the RSPCA. As well as the ban, he was sentenced to 240 hours of community service to be undertaken in the next 12 months and ordered to pay £559.48 in costs to the RSPCA. David Hobbs was the RSPCA inspector who was sent to the kennels, Rose Avanon near Winnards Perch, St Columb, in Cornwall, after an anonymous tip-off. Outside the court, he said: "The conditions in that ramshackle building were shocking. "The animals were cramped, and there was not a dry area in the whole place. It was soaked in urine and mess. The smell was horrendous. "In one area the dogs had only a raised concrete platform to lie on and in another a wooden platform with nails sticking out of it. "There was no bedding at all and no fixed containers for water. Almost all of the water bowls were empty. It was squalid." He phoned veterinary surgeon Mr Hill, whose post-mortem examination revealed nothing in the beagle's entire gastro-intestinal tract, signifying she had had nothing to eat for about 48 hours. The bitch had been close to giving birth to eight puppies. A puppy in the same kennel as the dead bitch was taken away from Heard after it was found to be severely dehydrated. It was later re-homed by the RSPCA. Another beagle bitch was also found dead, again with eight unborn puppies. A post mortem examination revealed the bitch was dehydrated, and the only items in her digestive system were soil and a few leaves. Tissue samples from both dead hounds were sent to a laboratory and came back negative to external illness. They have banned him for 10 years from keeping animals, but in my view it would be better if it were a lifetime.

Hunt saboteurs in East Anglia are fuming after a hunt supporter guilty of assaulting a female protestor and a policeman was given a 12 month bind over on 21/6/02 by Bury St Edmunds magistrates. "This amounts to nothing more than a slap on the wrists for him and a slap in the face for us" said one member of Suffolk and Essex Sabs, the local hunt saboteur group. Sabs had been using non-violent direct action to prevent the Suffolk Hunt killing foxes when Martin Nunn, a supporter of the hunt who is also known to help out with kennel duties, attacked a hunt saboteur. When a policeman intervened to halt the attack, he too was assaulted. The incident at Wepstead near Bury St Edmunds was clearly captured on video. Hunt Saboteurs Association spokesperson Nathan Brown commented: "Is it any wonder that hunt supporters continue to attack people who protest against them when this is the punishment they receive?

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