Judge’s ruling was not disclosed to jurors in two trials and can only now be revealed after reporting restrictions lifted
Four Palestine Action activists convicted after a retrial over a violent protest at an Israeli arms manufacturer’s UK site face being sentenced as terrorists despite the jury not being told this.
In an unprecedented move in a criminal damage case, the judge, Mr Justice Johnson, ruled before the first trial that there appeared to be a “terrorist connection” to the offences – even though the protest took place before Palestine Action was proscribed – but this could not be told to the jury. The finding and the restriction on telling the jury continued for the retrial.
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