Scotland-20 October:
In a complete victory, Angie Zelter, Ulla Roder and Ellen Moxley were
acquitted of damaging a floating lab for British Trident submarines. The
three women hammered, tossed files overboard, damaged circuits, jammed
winches, destroyed computers etc., in Loch Goil last June.
A trial which lasted three weeks climaxed when Sheriff (Judge, to us) Margaret Gimblett instructed the jury at Greenock Sheriff Court to acquit.
During the trial, evidence had been heard from University of Illinois International Law Professor Francis Boyle, Professor Paul Rogers of the School of Peace Studies at Bradford University, Rebecca Johnson, a leading authority on international nuclear disarmament and Professor Jack Boag, a leading authority on the effects of nuclear weapons. During these submissions it was established that the way in which Trident was deployed, at the time of the alleged offense, was a threat.
Sheriff Gimblett said, "I listened carefully to Professor Boyle
and have taken into account all the evidence in this case from him and
the other experts and in the absence of any expert contradictory evidence
from the crown, I 
have
to conclude that the three accused in company with many others were justified
in thinking that Great Britain in their use of Trident, not simply possession,
the use and deployment of Trident allied with that use and deployment at
times of great unrest, coupled with a first strike policy and in the absence
of indication from any government official then or now that such use fell
into any strict category suggested in the ICJ opinion, then the threat
or use of Trident could be construed as a threat, has indeed been construed
by others as a threat and as such is an infringement of international and
customary law.
The three took the view if it was illegal and, given the horrendous
nature of nuclear weapons they had the obligation in terms of international
law to do whatever they could to stop the deployment and use of nuclear
weapons in situations which could be construed as a threat…I have heard
nothing which would make it seem to me that the accused acted with criminal
intent…Therefore I intend to instruct the jury that they should acquit
all three... 
