>Throughout the trial, the protestors did not disagree that they were the ones who orchestrated the demise of the statue, but argued their actions were accounted for because the statue itself had been a hate crime against the people of Bristol.
>The four defendants laughed as they were today cleared of criminal damage charges, and hugged supporters as they left the courtroom.
> One of Avon and Somerset's most senior police officers, Chief Superintendent Liz Hughes, said in the wake of the verdict: 'I absolutely respect the decision of the jury today and feel that we have done our best to present that evidence. That is the decision that they have made.
>'This case has provoked a lot of dialogue in the city around equality and I hope that there are positive moves that arise from these conversations,' she said, but added that 'in the eyes of the law, there was always a clear offence of criminal damage in our investigation.'
>Summarising before the jury returned their decision, Judge Peter Blair QC reminded the jury to 'disregard rhetoric' about the high-profile case and decide purely on evidence laid out before them.
>In a statement following the verdict, Raj Chada, who represented Jake Skuse, said: 'The truth is that the defendants should never have been prosecuted.
>Blinne Ni Ghralaigh, for Rhian Graham, said: 'This case demonstrates the fundamental importance of trial by jury.
>'That is because juries represent the collective sense of justice of the community.
>'In this case, they determined that a conviction for the removal of this statue - that glorified a slave trader involved in the enslavement of over 84,000 black men, women and children as a 'most virtuous and wise' man - would not be proportionate.'
Read the whole article and literally see nothing to indicate why the jury made their decision, looks like a clear cut case of political bias, fucking STATE of it all
>Yeah you did it but you're on our side so who cares lmao
what a fucking farce, absolutely no pretence of liberalism or "justice" whatsover, meanwhile you put a piece of bacon on a mosque door and you'll be thrown to the paki prison gangs