Victory for the Right to Rescue in the UK

Four rescuers were acquitted of burglary moments ago in a groundbreaking trial in the United Kingdom. This comes just days after four other defendants were convicted for the same exact actions. (Those prior defendants still face 10 years in prison; sentencing has been scheduled for February 19.) I was there during the closing argument, and things were intense. The prosecutor made arguments that seemed to imply the entire nation would fall apart if the defendants were acquitted—the “fall of social order,” etc.

But he was wrong about that. The only thing that will fall is something that should have fallen years ago: industries of abuse. And I’ll have much more to say about that tomorrow. For now, here are some of the quick lessons:

Transparency wins. I just blogged about this, but the defendants’ focus on openness was key to building trust—and persuading the jury.

Focus on individual stories. Unlike the first trial, the defense focused more on compelling individual stories, including one defendant who traveled to Ukraine to save dogs from a war zone.

The jury came back with a verdict with astonishing speed. The entire deliberation took about an hour, maybe less. And it showed the confidence with which the jury believed in the defendants.

The jury celebrated with the defendants. One juror shook Tom’s hand. (Tom was one of the defendants.) Others smiled or gave us thumbs up signs as they were walking out. It was a joyous moment.

There are more trials to come—and to win. There are many ways in which this case could have been difficult, as proven by the first defendants’ conviction. And there were many challenging facts to overcome, including the mass use of tools that are often used by real burglars to enter the facility. The fact that the defendants won shows that we can win with challenging facts, and with a challenging judge.

The world is ready for the right to rescue. It’s up to us to deliver on this for the animals who are waiting for us.