Justice for beaten hunt sab
Enough is enough! I am a hunt sab and the decision by Sussex Police not to take the case forward against Jane Miller/ Goring has really upset my fellow sabs and me. Every week we experience threats, intimidation and often actual violence from the hunts and every week I read reports on social media of increasingly frequent and serious attacks on hunt sabs and monitors.
The hunt sab who was beaten has health problems but is out in the field every week, helping to protect wildlife from illegal hunting. He has been assaulted many times and never received justice- this has to stop- the violent hunt supporters need to know that there will be legal consequences if they attack us before another hunt sab is killed.
The police seem to pick and choose what laws they will enforce- they will not enforce the hunting ban, and they will not protect hunt sabs, the only ones trying to uphold the law out in the field. Attack after attack on hunt sabs goes unpunished and the police are giving people such this violent aggressive woman a green light to attack us with impunity- this was Jane Miller's second unprovoked attack on hunt sabs within a month and in neither case was there any form of provocation or retaliation as the videos show.
The sabs were only on foot at this point because hunt supporters had blocked their vehicles in on the road, so they got out and walked. This rider came up and attempted to ride down one sab after another, until when she was targeting a small female sab, another sab stepped up and took hold of her reins to take control of her horse and stop her repeated attempts to trample sabs- you may not have seen the start of the film as (strangely??) the BBC omitted the rider's attempts to ride down the sabs which were clearly the reason the man was forced to take hold of her reins.
The rider then beat him SEVENTEEN times with her whip, then as she rode away she whipped another sab who was standing nearby. A few minutes later she charged at a group of sabs from behind so they had to scatter to avoid being trampled.
The prolonged assault was captured on FOUR video recordings from different angles and FIVE witnesses came forward to make statements- but Sussex Police decided not to proceed with the case before the fifth witness (of whom they were aware) had even submitted her statement- this not only displays bias but is also unlawful. When the victim in this case was given the news that the case was being dropped he pointed out that one of the witnesses had not yet even given her statement, and was told that it 'won't make any difference'
The reason Sussex Police dropped the case?
''Insufficient evidence'''.
How many people would have to be recording an assault on a hunt sab before it is considered enough evidence?
Hunt sabs go out every week of the hunting season and protect wildlife from illegal hunting because the police will not enforce the hunting ban. We face intimidation, harassment, threats and violence. And, emboldened by the inactivity of the police, the hunt violence against us is escalating.
Please help ALL hunt sabs and monitors by helping this hunt sab get justice so that hunters realise that the violence must stop.
When the fund raiser is closed, or the target is reached the money will be held in an account overseen by Outpaced until it is needed.
This money will be used to help fund a private prosecution in this case; if for some unforeseen reason this does not happen the money raised will be used to prosecute other hunt violence against hunt sabs or monitors, at the discretion of Outpaced.
Ray Puttock is the founder of Outpaced, a voluntary organisation which for three years has helped and advised many, many hunt sabs, hunt monitors and badger cull sabs, holding police to account by the use of PSD and IPCC complaints, and legal action against police. Ray is currently helping wildlife activists with several similar incidents, including another recent whipping by a huntsman.
It is hoped this private prosecution will succeed and be awarded its costs, thus allowing this same funding to be returned to and held by Outpaced and applied to further prosecutions. Thus every pound donated could support other cases in the future and the police will understand that dropping a case in spite of a wealth of evidence does not mean the end of the matter and hunters will no longer think that they can attack hunt sabs with impunity,.
The funds will be ring fenced for this sole use.
Thank you so very much.