HUNTSMAN TO APPEAL AGAINST GUILTY VERDICT

Huntsman to appeal against guilty verdict
Aug 8 2006
Steve Dube, Western Mail

EXMOOR huntsman Tony Wright will launch an appeal against his conviction for an offence under the Hunting Act following a guilty verdict in Barnstaple Magistrates' Court.
Tony Wright was convicted despite evidence that he was attempting to comply with the conditions for "exempt hunting" with two hounds and a marksman, and that a fox was shot.
However, the judge said no reasonable steps were taken to shoot the fox as soon as possible and the dogs were not under close control as required by the hunting exemption.
Former South Pembrokeshire Master Simon Hart, chief executive of the Countryside Alliance, claimed no right-minded person would think that Mr Wright should have been branded a criminal.

"If people were confused about the Hunting Act before today, they will be a lot more confused now," said Mr Hart. "We believe that he was trying to comply with the law as he understood it and will be supporting his appeal."

Wright, aged 52, was fined £500 and ordered to pay £250 costs by District Judge Paul Palmer after a week-long hearing at Barnstaple Magistrates' Court in Devon.
Wright pleaded not guilty to the charge of hunting a fox on April 29 last year contrary to the 2004 Hunting Act.

The private prosecution by the League Against Cruel Sports was the first in England and Wales involving a fox or stag hunt.

The judge told Wright, "I understand the difficulty that everyone has with the Act coming into force."
But he said, "What I saw was not exempt hunting."

Giving the reasons for his finding, the judge said he was of the view that Wright was hunting with two dogs.

The judge said videos shot by the League Against Cruel Sports showed the hounds following the line of the fox at speed without immediately being called off.

There was a substantial chase of each of the two foxes seen on the videos long after they were flushed from cover.

There was only one marksman, who was not going to be in a position to shoot the animal as soon as possible.

During the case the League claimed the foxhounds acted with "wilful disregard" of the Act, and what they did bore all the hallmarks of traditional hunting.

"This is a piece of legislation which took seven years and 700 hours of parliamentary time to get onto the statute book, yet still it is illogical and unclear," said Simon Hart.

"Any law which can put a man like Tony Wright through nine months of court action and tell him he is a criminal for doing something he believed was entirely legal clearly isn't working."

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