Two women sentenced after Newsprint International protest
Two women have been convicted of wilful obstruction of the highway following a protest at Newsprint International in Knowsley.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said that Frances Henderson, 22, of Alan Road, Manchester, and Elizabeth Haughton, 26, of no fixed address, were part of a protest at the Penrhyn Road site on 4 and 5 September 2020.
They had shackled and glued themselves to vehicles to block the main entrances to the premises, where a number of national newspapers are printed.
The protest meant that more than one hundred delivery lorries were unable to access or leave the printing works and this resulted in a loss of millions of pounds in revenue to the newspapers.
The two women denied the charges but were found guilty today (27 April 2022) after a two day trial at Liverpool Magistrates’ court.
They were each given a two year conditional discharge, ordered to pay £600 in costs and a £22 victim surcharge.
District Crown Prosecutor Chris Maloney of CPS Mersey Cheshire, said: "The Crown Prosecution Service argued successfully in this case that this was a wilful obstruction of a public highway.
“We argued that the women were acting with others and this was an organised protest. They were wilfully obstructing free passage and interfering with the rights of others and they have been convicted.
“We hope this sends out a clear message to others who commit similar offences.”