Leading anti-nuclear campaigner Angie Zelter challenged the authority of Helensburgh District Court when she appeared on 27 January on trial for a protest at Faslane in August last year. At the start of the trial she made it clear that she did not consider that the court was acting justly. This follows a series of cases where defendants have argued that they were upholding international law and the Court has dismissed the issue as being irrelevant. The previous day two other members of Trident Ploughshares 2000 had made a very good case in defence of a minor charge breach of the peace, assisted by their Lawyer. At the end of a long day the JP found them guilty and imposed large fines, without giving any explanation for his decision.
When Angie challenged the court she was arrested for contempt of court. When the JP ordered that the court rise, Angie's supporters in the room refused to stand. After a few minutes the JP left, but no-one stood. A short time later large numbers of police appeared at high speed, but by then the situation was over.
Angie was brought back into the court later in the day. This time the case was unable to start because the Police witnesses had all been sent away.