Jugendamtsterror und Familienrechtsverbrechen

Gast

Last Updated: Wednesday, 3 October 2007, 16:11 GMT 17:11 UK
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Two cleared in handcuffed MP case
Fathers' rights campaigners Jason Hatch and Jonathan Stanesby
Mr Hatch and Mr Stanseby were cleared of false imprisonment
A fathers' rights campaigner who handcuffed himself to former children's minister Margaret Hodge has been cleared of false imprisonment.

Mrs Hodge was ambushed at a Law Society conference at the Lowry Hotel in Salford, Greater Manchester, in 2004.

The MP was handcuffed for 20 minutes Manchester Crown Court heard.

Jonathan Stanesby, 41, from Ivybridge, Devon, was cleared along with Jason Hatch, 35, from Cheltenham, who tried but failed to reach the MP.

Mrs Hodge, who is now culture minister, had to be freed with bolt cutters.

The minister was at the Lowry Hotel on 19 November for a conference called "Battle of the Sexes".

Margaret Hodge MP
Margaret Hodge MP was at a Law Society conference

She was handcuffed by Mr Stanesby as she took part in a question-and-answer session afterwards.

He cuffed her wrist to his, saying: "Margaret Hodge, I'm arresting you for covering up child abuse."

This was a reference to Mrs Hodge's time as a councillor in Islington, north London.

Mr Hatch also attempted to handcuff the Cabinet minister and MP for Barking but was blocked from reaching her by Mrs Hodge's assistant private secretary.

At the trial Mrs Hodge described how she was "distressed" by the activists' actions.

'Upset and disturbed'

"I did have a pain on my wrist for about six months afterwards," she said.

"I was upset and I was very disturbed by that incident."

But Kyri Argyropoulos, for Mr Stanesby, suggested that the minister was not prepared to meet members of Fathers 4 Justice because of their past behaviour.

He suggested she was "far from accessible" - a charge Mrs Hodge denied.

Jonathan Stanesby at an earlier protest
Jonathan Stanesby at a previous fathers' rights protest

Alan Wolstenholme, prosecuting, said the men "went much further than they were entitled to do".

The verdicts were met with cheers and applause from Fathers 4 Justice supporters in the public gallery.

The court heard how both men had previously been involved in high-profile protests for the group.

Mr Hatch, who gained notoriety after scaling the walls of Buckingham Palace dressed as Batman, thanked the jury after the not guilty verdict was read out.

He said he was "ecstatic" at the verdict.

"The jury are sending a clear message that the family law courts must be overhauled immediately.

"The breakdown in our society can quite clearly be traced to the breakdown of families. The only way this can be rectified is by stopping the secrecy of family courts.

"I carried out a citizen's arrest on Margaret Hodge and it looks like the jury thought I was justified to do so."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/7024846.stm

Last Updated: Monday, 1 October 2007, 14:36 GMT 15:36 UK
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Protesters 'meant Hodge no harm'
Margaret Hodge MP
Margaret Hodge MP was at a Law Society conference
Two fathers' rights protesters who handcuffed former children's minister Margaret Hodge during a protest have denied ever intending to hurt her.

Ms Hodge was ambushed at a Law Society conference at the Lowry Hotel in Salford, Greater Manchester, in 2004.

Jonathan Stanesby, 41, from Ivybridge, Devon, and Jason Hatch, 35, from Cheltenham, deny false imprisonment.

Both men also denied that they ever intended to cause the minister and MP for Barking harm or distress.

Mr Hatch apologised to Ms Hodge for any harm she suffered during the 20-minute ordeal.

If you look down through history, the only way to change things is by making a fuss
Jonathan Stanesby

Mr Stanesby told Manchester Crown Court that only campaigners who "make a fuss" change government policy.

The court heard how Mr Stanesby grabbed Ms Hodge by the arm before handcuffing her wrist to his at the conference on 19 November 2004.

Giving evidence at the beginning of his defence case, Mr Stanesby said: "We did it for publicity reasons. We had no intention of harming anyone in the protest.

"If you look down through history, the only way to change things is by making a fuss."

He spoke of taking part in about 15 other "stunts", once bringing the M4 motorway to a standstill after attaching himself to a bridge dressed as Father Christmas.

Mr Hatch achieved notoriety after scaling Buckingham Palace dressed as Batman.

'Direct action'

He said he took direct action after Ms Hodge ignored his letters highlighting his difficulty gaining access to his children.

Mr Hatch also told the court he was no longer a member of the campaign group Fathers 4 Justice.

He said: "One thing I still firmly believe is that Fathers 4 Justice, all the Batman and Spider-Man stuff, it was all done to get the notice of the government.

"I am very sorry for any harm that has come to Ms Hodge. There was no intention to cause any harm to her."

Mr Stanesby added he hoped his actions had been in part responsible for Mrs Hodge leaving her role as children's minister.

She is now a minister of state at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

The case continues.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/7022492.stm

Last Updated: Wednesday, 26 September 2007, 13:51 GMT 14:51 UK
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Minister 'shocked' after protest
Margaret Hodge
Margaret Hodge was left in the handcuffs for 40 minutes
Former children's minister Margaret Hodge has told a jury she was "shocked and distressed" after being handcuffed by two fathers' rights protesters.

Ms Hodge told Manchester Crown Court she was "completely taken aback" after the ambush at a Law Society conference at The Lowry Hotel in Salford 2004.

Jason Hatch, 35, of Cheltenham, and Jonathan Stanesby, 41, of Ivybridge, Devon, deny false imprisonment.

Both were members of the group Fathers 4 Justice.

Ms Hodge, now culture minister, was handcuffed to Mr Stanesby for 20 minutes and had to be freed with bolt cutters in what she described as a "cold and calculated attack".

She told the court she had given her speech to 200 lawyers at the event and sat down when she noticed two men entering the conference room to her left.

One of them shouted something like, 'Margaret Hodge, I am arresting you for child abuse'
Margaret Hodge

"I thought they looked a bit odd," she told the jury.

"They had ill-fitting suits on and did not look like lawyers. They walked in a few paces, they then rushed at me, one grabbed each arm.

"One of them shouted something like, 'Margaret Hodge, I am arresting you for child abuse'.

"That was the start of the scuffle."

The court has previously heard how Mr Hatch was grabbed by a security guard but managed to get free and leave the conference, dropping his handcuffs on the way.

'Taken aback'

"The man on my left, who still had hold of my arm, I was aware he took a handcuff out and put it around my arm," she said.

"I then realised I was handcuffed to the other man.

"I was obviously completely taken aback. I did have a pain on my wrist for about six months afterwards."

The MP for Barking said a police officer tried to free her with a key but the locks had been glued, before a bolt cutter was used.

Ms Hodge added: "I was really shocked and distressed and did not really know what to do next.

"I was 60 at the time it happened and not only I think is it awful for a 60-year-old woman to be attacked in that way, also because in a free and open democracy if we are to protect and maintain that democracy people who are elected representatives must feel able to go about their business without fear of being physically assaulted.

"I was upset and I was very disturbed by that incident."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/manchester/7014552.stm