A Just Stop Oil protester who glued himself to the road to disrupt traffic called his guilty verdict "embarrassing" for the government.
Wirral man Benjamin Larsen, 25, was among six protesters yesterday found guilty of disrupting traffic near the Natural History Museum during a protest in central London. Larsen, Lora Johnson, 38, Ben Sansam, 38, Anna Retallack, 58, Stephen Jarvis, 66, and Rachel Payne, 71, were convicted of wilful obstruction of the highway following a two-day trial at Westminster Magistrates' Court.
They were among 17 people who sat across a busy dual carriageway causing traffic queues in both directions on October 19. It marked the 19th consecutive day of disruption by the campaign group.
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Bodycam footage of Met Police Constable Daniel Woodley was played in court which showed a nurse approach the officer and tell him: “I’m a nurse waiting to do swabs on a VIP, do you mind if I do a U-ey (U-turn)?” PC Woodley said the nurse had been on her way to attend a 90-year-old patient who was “in desperate need of care” – however Retallack, who was self-representing, contested this.
Retallack said the nurse had mentioned an elderly patient, and the officer had confused her with another motorist who complained of being late to a “meeting” with a 90-year-old. The bodycam footage was played twice in court, showing that the nurse did not reference a 90-year-old patient.
Police Sergeant Kevin Nelson, who led the Met's response to the demonstration, said four motorists at the scene expressed "frustration" at the protestors. These included a van driver who asked demonstrators "Have you not got jobs?" and a bus driver who "was pleading" with them to move.
Larsen, who works in forestry and land management, said: “In my view, it’s a political decision to prosecute me today, and it’s embarrassing that the UK Government and judiciary are going down that route."
Larsen and Jarvis were ordered to pay £480 each, including a £200 fine, £200 costs and an £80 victim surcharge. Sansam, from Bristol, Johnson, Retallack and Payne received a 12-month conditional discharge and were ordered to pay £226, including £200 costs and a £26 victim surcharge.
Sheila Shatford, 67, admitted one count of wilfully obstructing a highway during the trial and will be sentenced on Thursday at Westminster Magistrates' Court.
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