Residents outside Cambridge Crown Court on Friday joined hundreds around the country as part of the Defend Our Juries campaign.
Sitting silently and holding signs, the group is emphasising the centuries-old principle of “jury equity” – the right of all jurors in British courtrooms to acquit a defendant according to their conscience and irrespective of the directions of the judge.
The demonstrations come amid mounting public concern that the right of juries to acquit a defendant according to their conscience is under threat.
Allie, 24, a programmer who took part in the Cambridge demonstration, said: “For centuries, juries have been a vital tool for keeping governments in step with what the populace actually thinks.
“Recently, the UK government has been pushing new laws through without even Parliament agreeing. These are laws designed to quash anyone who disagrees with the people in charge from being heard.
“Laws are not absolute morals and people are legally allowed to apply their morals to their judgments. For a judge to threaten a jury with arrest if they dare to think about their morals and lie to them about the law is abhorrent and we must turn out and show that.”
A new law was brought in by then-Attorney General Suella Braverman in 2022 following the acquittal in January 2022 of the Colston Four, who toppled the statue of slave-trader Edward Colston into Bristol harbour. Braverman appealed the decision and, although the acquittal was unchanged, the law was tweaked by the Court of Appeal later that year so that protesters accused of “significant” criminal damage can no longer rely on human rights protections when on trial.
Frances Dewhurst, a retired solicitor who also took action in Cambridge, said: “Juries are 12 randomly selected members of the public serving the cause of justice – they are genuinely peers of the accused and are crucial to sustaining a fair system of justice.
“Our law has supported the right of juries to decide in accordance with their conscience since the 17th century and juries’ decisions have demonstrated that the law and the executive government can be out of step with the consensus of public opinion and the interests of justice. Jurors can acquit because, in the circumstances of the trial, the law is unjust. No one should be prosecuted for pointing this out. We should be protecting this fundamental safeguard for individuals against oppressive laws or oppressive enforcement of laws.”
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “We cannot comment on judicial decisions or ongoing cases, so are unable to comment on the protests.”
The demonstration passed off without further incident.
