View source for GANDALF trial

{{Short description|1997 UK trial of the editors of Green Anarchist magazine}}
{{about|the 1990s British court case|the ''[[The Lord of the Rings|Lord of the Rings]]'' character|Gandalf}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
'''GANDALF''' was an [[acronym]] (''[[Green Anarchist|'''G'''reen '''A'''narchist]]'' a'''nd''' '''''[[Animal Liberation Front|ALF]]''''') for the 1997 trial in the [[United Kingdom]] of the editors of ''Green Anarchist'' magazine, as well as two prominent British supporters of the [[Animal Liberation Front]] and [[Animal Liberation Front Supporters Group]] (ALF SG), on charges of conspiracy to incite criminal damage.

Beginning in 1995, the Hampshire police under "Operation Washington" began a series of at least 56 raids, which resulted in the August&ndash;November 1997 trial in Portsmouth of ''Green Anarchist'' editors Stephen Booth, Saxon Burchnall-Wood, Noel Molland, and Paul Rogers, as well as ALF press officer [[Robin Webb]] and ALF SG newsletter editor Simon Russell. The defendants organized the GANDALF defence campaign.

On 14 November 1997, three of the editors of ''Green Anarchist'', Steve Booth, Saxon Burchnall-Wood and Noel Molland were jailed for three years for conspiracy to incite criminal damage. The jury acquitted Simon Russell.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Burrell |first1=Ian |title=Environment: Editors jailed for urging violence |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/environment-editors-jailed-for-urging-violence-1294027.html |access-date=4 August 2025 |publisher=The Independent |date=15 November 1997}}</ref> After four and a half months, all three were released pending an appeal, and their convictions were overturned.<ref>''The Journalist'', National Union of Journalists, 1997, p. 73.</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Zobel |first1=Gibby |title=GAndALF Freed After Spell In Prison |url=https://squallmagazine.com/f/f16-18-gandalf-freed.html |website=Squall Magazine |publisher=Squall |access-date=4 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Anarchists Win |url=https://archive.org/details/NewsUK1998UKEnglish/Jul%2024%201998%2C%20The%20Times%2C%20%2366262%2C%20UK%20%28en%29/page/n5/mode/1up?q=%22green+anarchist%22 |access-date=5 August 2025 |work=The Times |date=14 July 1998}}</ref>

On 26 November 1998, the cases against Rogers and Webb were dismissed on the grounds that the charges were wrongly worded. ''The Times'' newspaper reported that the Crown Prosecution Service had been "accused of wasting millions of pounds."<ref>{{cite news |title=CPS Accused |url=https://archive.org/details/NewsUK1998UKEnglish/Nov%2027%201998%2C%20The%20Times%2C%20%2366370%2C%20UK%20%28en%29/page/n1/mode/1up?q=%22green+anarchist%22 |access-date=5 August 2025 |work=The Times |date=27 November 1998}}</ref>

The presiding judge at the trial was David Selwood,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Burrell |first1=Ian |title=Environment: Editors jailed for urging violence |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/environment-editors-jailed-for-urging-violence-1294027.html |access-date=4 August 2025 |publisher=The Independent |date=15 November 1997}}</ref> who in 2012 would be convicted of offences relating to child pornography.<ref>{{cite news |title=Porn judge escapes jail |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/hp/front/porn-judge-escapes-jail-6970259.html |access-date=5 August 2025 |work=Evening Standard |date=13 April 2012}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrC65HkXlvs Green Anarchist and ALF Trial] Short film by ''Undercurrents'' including interviews with the defendants.

{{Animal rights|state=collapsed}}

[[Category:Green anarchism]]
[[Category:Animal Liberation Front]]
[[Category:1997 in United Kingdom case law]]
[[Category:1997 in the United Kingdom]]

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