20th November 2005

JUDGE WARNS ARMS COMPANY OVER DELAYING TACTICS IN INJUNCTION HEARINGS

The full trial of a controversial High Court civil injunction, brought by Brighton arms dealers EDO MBM Technology Ltd., against a number of anti-war protesters, due to start on 21st November has been delayed by the ‘astonishing’ behaviour of EDO’s lawyer, Mr Tim Lawson-Cruttenden, a High Court judge said last week.

In a preliminary hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice on Wednesday 16th November, Judge Walker expressed ‘grave concerns’ about the EDO representative’s lack of preparation for what had been ordered to be a speedy trial.

Judge Walker warned EDO that if the main trial date was lost altogether, the court would have to seriously consider lifting the interim injunction. It has been in place for nearly six months, and has already led to two peaceful protesters being remanded in Lewes prison for alleged breaches of its conditions. Protesters believe that there has been deliberate foot dragging by EDO to prevent a full trial taking place.

The main trial, originally fixed to begin on November 21st at the High Court, will now be delayed until allegations that EDO’s lawyers have illegally solicited and disclosed privileged documents, have been scrutinised by Judge Walker. These issues will be dealt with in a hearing on Wednesday 23rd, Thursday 24th and Monday 28th November at the Royal Courts of Justice.

In another development Judge Walker ordered that EDO managing Director David Jones must give a sworn affidavit explaining the mysterious disappearance of a whole years worth of CCTV footage of protests outside the factory.

DEMONSTRATION

SMASH EDO: MARCH AGAINST THE INJUNCTION
Churchill Square, Brighton
12 Noon. Saturday Dec 10th 2005

Notes for Journalists

Brighton & Hove is a UN Peace Messenger City

The injunction referred to was served under the 1997 Protection from Harassment Act (originally designed to protect women from stalkers) and is the first of its kind directed at activists outside of the animal rights movement. Crucially it is a civil injunction but carries criminal penalties. It affects anyone deemed to be a protestor. Initially EDO/MBM requested a large "exclusion zone" comprising the whole of Home Farm Industrial Estate.

They and Sussex police also wanted to limit demonstrations to two and a half hours, with less thanten people who had to be silent. Judge Gross refusedto impose these conditions at the initial hearing of an interim injunction, which was put in place in the period before the full trial to be heard at the High court in London from November 21st. In his summing up he said, "The right to freedom of _expression is jealously guarded in English law" and consequently refused to impose the requested limits on size, timing or noise made at demonstrations. He also said that he doubted that protesters were 'stalking' employees of EDO MBM.

EDO MBM Technologies Ltd are the sole UK subsidiary of huge U.S arms conglomerate EDO Corp, which was recently named No. 10 in the Forbes list of 100 fastest growing companies. They supply bomb release mechanisms to the US and UK armed forces amongstothers. They supply crucial components for Raytheon's Paveway guided bomb system, widely used in the "Shock and Awe" campaign in Iraq.

EDO also withdrew a threatened libel action against Indymedia over being named as "warmongers".

Lawson-Cruttenden & Co
Solicitors firm working for EDO have been instrumental in developing the Protection of Harassment Act 1997 from a measure designed to safeguard individuals to a corporate charter to make inconvenient protest illegal. Theyhave pioneered to use of injunctions to create large "exclusion zones". They have secured numerous injunctions against anti-vivisection and anti-GM protestors.

Campaign against EDO MBM
People involved in the anti-EDO campaign include, but are not limited to: local residents, the Brighton Quakers, peace activists, anti-capitalists, Palestine Solidarity groups, human rights groups, trade unionists, academics and students. The campaign started in August 2004 with a peace camp. It's avowed aim is to expose EDO MBM and their complicity in war crimes and to remove them from Brighton.

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