Gough, ‘the naked rambler’, argued that his desire to appear naked in court, an act which he characterised as a fundamental freedom, was not an act calculated to offend the authority and dignity of the court; in order for his naked appearance to constitute a contempt of court, it had to be established that it interfered with the due administration of justice, which he did not intend.
Held: The court gave examples of forms of contempt, including what were described as disciplinary matters of good order, such as taking photographs in court, citing Vincent D as an uncontroversial example at paragraph 32 of its decision, and the more serious ones where there was a direct challenge to the authority of the court and to the integrity of its proceedings, which included an attempt to pervert the course of justice.
Lord Gill, Lord Justice-Clerk said: ‘In each of the cases involving the complainer it is submitted that his conduct was not contemptuous. I do not agree. In my opinion, the appearance of anyone in court naked, whatever crimes that may constitute, is unquestionably a contempt. The court is entitled to enforce standards of decency and decorum in the dress and demeanour of those who appear before it, whether as witnesses, lawyers, jurors or accused. Conduct such as the complainer’s is not only indecorous. It can offend, upset or alarm those present. It can distract those engaged in the trial from the essential issues. It adds to the difficulties of the presiding judge or sheriff. In all of these ways it impairs the administration of justice.
It is fallacious, in my opinion, to suggest, as counsel for the complainer did, that the complainer had no mens rea because he sincerely believed that his conduct was not contemptuous. It is sufficient to establish mens rea that he intended to do that which, in the eyes of the law, constitutes contempt.’
Judges:
Lord Gill, Lord Justice-Clerk
Citations:
[2007] ScotHC HCJAC – 63
Links:
Jurisdiction:
Scotland
Cited by:
Cited – HM Solicitor General v Cox and Another QBD 27-May-2016
Applications for committal of the defendants for having taken photographs of court proceedings when their friend was being sentenced for murder and publishing them on Facebook. The SG urged that the offences had aggravating features taking the . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Scotland
Updated: 12 July 2022; Ref: scu.261790