Appeals by case stated from failures at trials of charges of obstructing the public highway in the course of protests at the opening of a Defence and Security fair.
Held: The DPP’s appeals were granted for the first four defendants but rejected for the second group as being without jurisdiction. As to the first four cases: ‘the assessment as to proportionality by the District Judge was in all the circumstances wrong. This is because (i) he took into account certain considerations which were irrelevant; and (ii) the overall conclusion was one that was not sustainable on the undisputed facts before him, in particular that the carriageway to the Excel Centre was completely blocked and that this was so for significant periods of time, between approximately 80 and 100 minutes.’
The Court gave a helpful rubric setting out the questions which will need to be considered when Articles 10 or 11 are applied in the context of s.137 of the Highways Act 1980.
Judges:
Singh LJ, Farbey J
Citations:
[2019] EWHC 71 (Admin), [2019] WLR(D) 81, [2020] QB 253, [2019] 2 WLR 1451
Links:
Statutes:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – Dolan and Others, Regina (on The Application of) v Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and Another CA 1-Dec-2020
Lockdown Measures not Ultra Vires the 1984 Act
The appellants, a businessman, and mother, appealed from refusal of leave to challenge regulations made in response to the Covid-19 pandemic on 26 March 2020 and since which introduced what was commonly known as a ‘lockdown’ in England. They . .
Applied – Leigh and Others v Commissioner of The Police of The Metropolis and Another Admn 12-Mar-2021
No declaration to require police to allow vigil
The claimants requested an interim declaration so as to allow them to hold a peaceful vigil on Clapham Common in memory of the late Sarah Everard. They challenged the failure of the respondent to permit it as an exercise of their human rights.
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Crime, Criminal Practice, Human Rights
Updated: 01 October 2022; Ref: scu.633146
