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Protesters bail to Birkhill - Gazette
07 February 2010
Protesters bail to Birkhill - Gazette
 
As the evictions continued at Mainshill in Douglas, where protesters against an opencast coal site have been camping in the wood for seven months, business was brisk at Lanark Sheriff Court, with over 40 brought there from custody.
On Tuesday the court sat until 6.45pm to hear the initial cases involving 19 protesters taken into custody on Monday, the first day of the evictions.
All pled not guilty to various charges, generally involving aggravated trespass, and all were released on bail conditions, most of them giving a bail address at Birkhill House, Coalburn. Bail conditions included an agreement that they would not return to Mainshill.
A further six protesters were brought to court from custody on Wednesday, along with one woman who appeared on an undertaking, relating to charges arising from Tuesday's evictions.
All seven were released on bail after agreeing that they would not return to Mainshill, and the six who appeared from custody were all granted bail to the Birkhill House address. All seven denied the charges facing them.
Oliver Munnion (24) and Michael Starkey (21) were charged with trespassing on land on which people were engaged in lawful activity, the execution of an eviction order, and of tying themselves together in a treehouse intending to disrupt or obstruct the eviction.
Esther Tew (24) and Rosie Barker (22) faced a similar charge of intending to obstruct the eviction by sheriff officers by locking on to each other while suspended 30 feet in the air from a treehouse.
Danya Ellis (21) was also charged with intending to obstruct the eviction, and that alleged that she had locked herself to a metal entrance to a tunnel.
The charge facing Sophie Bastable (22) alleged that she had refused to descend from a treehouse and climbed further up the tree, to obstruct the eviction.
Rosalind Bullen (30), the only one not to appear from custody, faced a charge of breach of the peace, alleging that she disrupted staff working on the site, placed her arms round the boom of a JCB and attempted to lock herself to a JCB.
In her case the fiscal opposed bail, but Sheriff Valerie Johnston allowed it, after confirming that she too would not return to Mainshill. Trial dates in May were set for all of them.
Appearing from custody on Thursday were eight protesters arrested the previous day, seven from Mainshill and one from Ravenstruther Coal Transfer Station.
Court No2 was set aside for the appearances with Sheriff Derek Livingston there to hear the cases.
All those arrested at Mainshill faced trespass charges alleging that they obstructed a legal eviction being carried ourt by Sheriff Officers, with an alternative of breach of the peace. All those arrested at Mainshill pleaded not guilty and trial dates were set for them.
All were bailed with special conditions that they not only desist from re-entering Mainshill Wood but also the other opencast industry sites in Clydesdale which have been the target for environmental protests — namely the Ravenstruther Transfer Station and mines at Poneil, Broken Cross and Glentaggart.
First in the dock was Mary Hunter (24), care of Birkhill House, Coalburn; she was accused of obstructing the Sheriff Officers by refusing to come out of a runnel.
After her solictor entered a not guilty plea and a request for bail, depute fiscal Gary Dow said that he would not be opposing bail but wanted the special conditions on the opencast sites imposed.
The solictor, who acted for all those appearing, argued against the condition covering the sites other than Mainshill itself, stating that the standard condition not to offend while on bail would be adequate to prevent further incidents.
However, Sheriff Livingston ruled that the special conditions were not unreasonable and Hunter and the subsequent Mainshill protesters accepted this ruling.
The others arrested at Mainshill to appear were Daniel Milnes (22), Heta Heta Haavisto (26), Nathan Samari (23), Angus Chalmers (17), David Shand (24) and Jake Butcher (24). All gave the Birkhill House address, with the exception of Haavisto who gave his as the Faslane Peace Camp.
Trial dates in May and June were set.
The only person to appear not arrested at Mainshill was Rory Walker (23), of 8 Blades Street, Lancaster, apprehended on Wednesday conducting a one-man protest at Ravenstruther Transfer Station.
He pleaded guilty to causing a breach of the peace by climbing onto the roof of a coal transport lorry and refusing to come down; work at the transfer station was held up for some hours as special equipment was brought in to allow police to bring him safely to the ground.
Sheriff Livingston noted that Walker had no previous convictions and had carried out his action "for the best of motives but you crossed an acceptable line."
He deferred sentence on Walker for three months, ordering him to be of good behaviour; the sheriff said that, should Walker not re-offend in the interim, he would recommend the sheriff finally sentencing him should admonish him.
Friday saw a further nine protesters, all arrested at Mainshill the previous day, appear in custody, charged with obstructing the eviction action with the alternative of causing a breach of the peace; all pleaded not guilty and were granted bail.
Again, the fiscal asked that all the open cast sites plus the rail station be ruled exclusion zones for the protesters but Sheriff Nikola Stewart, presiding on Friday, said that the condition should apply only to Mainshill.
She commented: "I'm not going to start banning people from going to other parts of Scotland unless I have evidence in front of me that there is real cause to suppose they will commit an offence there. In the absence of that, I will limit the condition to Mainshill."
Friday's accused all gave Birkhill House as an address and were given various trial dates in May and June.
They were: Natalia De Santos (21), Samuel Jones (24), Eleanor Julings (23), William Roper (22), Behia Evans (21), Sophie Preston (24), Lorna Marcham (24), Elizabeth Whelan (24) and Richard Shore (25).
Police sources indicated on Friday that these were the last arrests expected at Mainshill and that the site was now clear of protesters.
But protesters were non-committal when asked by the Gazette if this was their understanding of the situation.
The protesters have had months to dig underground hides in the woods.
It is understood that, as a result, an almost inch-by-inch search of areas of woodland is being carried out before bulldozers are then sent in to clear the area of vegetation and protest camp debris.