Judge cleared on New Year's Day assaults on hunt saboteurs in Derbyshire field

Mark Davies, aged 67, of Lumb Lane, Bradfield, chairman of the Barlow Hunt, was accused of assaulting Austin Jordan and William Robinson in a field on private land at Highlightley Farm, at Barlow, on January 1, 2019.

During the second day of evidence into the case at Chesterfield Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, January 8, Mr Davies said that it was he who had been assaulted by the protestors, with Mr Jordan smashing him in the face with a metal canister, knocking him to the floor and cutting his face.

He said that he had then ‘rugby tackled’ Mr Robinson to the floor when he got back to his feet, because he was acting in self defence and felt that both he and his wife - Joan Williams, a retired Superintendent with South Yorkshire Police - were in danger of attack.

Video footage of the incident played at the trial showed Mr Davies wrestling with Mr Jordan before falling to the ground, although it was unclear whether the cannister had hit his face.

The footage also showed Mrs Williams - who had her arm in a sling at the time - being pushed to the ground.

Mr Davies described seeing the group of four wearing dark clothing with their faces concealed as they tried to make their way past them and his wife to observe trail hunting in the next field. He had been in the process of restoring an electric fence when the incident happened.

“I told them that they had no right to be there and I held my arms out to stop them from trespassing any further,” he told the court.

“The next thing I can recall is being struck in the face and falling to the ground.”

Speaking about the alleged assault on Mr Robinson, he added: “I really thought he was going to attack me. I felt intimidated and threatened by them and there were women and children present.”

Following a two-day trial, Mr Davies was found not guilty of both charges.