Government drops appeal over climate activist who held sign outside UK court | UK criminal justice

The government has dropped an appeal against a judge’s decision to throw out a contempt case against a woman who stood outside a climate activist trial holding a placard about jury rights.

In an email sent on Thursday, a lawyer from the government legal department, led by Richard Hermer, who was recently appointed attorney general, said they had “further considered this case and decided not to pursue the appeal”.

It is the end of an 18-month legal saga for Trudi Warner, who was arrested after she stood outside inner London crown court for 30 minutes holding a sign saying: “Jurors, you have an absolute right to acquit according to your conscience.”

Her protest came at the start of a trial of Insulate Britain protesters for a roadblock on the M25, before a judge who had forbidden their mentioning climate breakdown as part of their defence. The judge, Silas Reid, referred Warner’s action to the attorney general to consider contempt of court.

Warner faced the possibility of a two-year sentence, but when she appeared before the high court in April a judge threw out the case, saying there was no basis for prosecuting and accusing government lawyers of “mischaracterising” the evidence against her.

Government lawyers appealed against the ruling. But on Thursday, the government legal department informed the court of appeal it was dropping the matter.

Warner said: “It’s wonderful that the right of juries to acquit according to their conscience is now unequivocally established as a legal principle in the UK. This will be more important than ever in our barely functioning democracy where people are unequal under the law.

“My case, and the response of the people in [the campaign group] Defend our Juries, has shown how effective collective action can be. This is a time for courage, which we must draw from one another. And we must hold together for the challenges ahead. We are many. They are few.”

A spokesperson for Defend Our Juries, which was established to campaign on Warner’s behalf, said: “Following the silencing and jailing of increasing numbers of people for trying to stop crimes against humanity, our campaign will now extend to pursuing freedom for political prisoners.”

The Guardian has contacted the attorney general’s office for comment.