2 huntsman have been cleared in court
2 huntsman have been cleared of charges of illegally hunting a fox in October 2012.
Weston and Banwell Harriers huntsman George Milton and whipper-In Toby Lee were cleared after a 4-day trial at Taunton Magistrates last month (31 March).
The case followed allegations by employees of the League Against Cruel Sports — 6 of whom had taken over 20 hours of video on the day of the allegation. The hounds were seen on the line of a fox for 93 seconds, but the District Judge said that it was clear that Mr Milton and Mr Lee had stopped the hounds.
District Judge Davison was also critical of the time the case had taken to reach trial and said that it “did not reflect well on the court”.
Tim Bonner, from the Countryside Alliance, said: “We are very pleased they have been acquitted, but the Countryside Alliance is extremely concerned about the role of Avon and Somerset Police and CPS in what amounts to little more than a campaign of harassment against the Weston and Banwell Harriers and its huntsman George Milton.
“Individuals working for a charity, the League Against Cruel Sports, have carried out dozens of sophisticated covert surveillance operations over several years targeting Mr Milton and made a series of allegations under the Hunting Act and other legislation.
“This is the second time he has been cleared of illegal hunting allegations in court, but he has also been charged with other offences which were dropped before they even got to trial.
Never miss out on the latest happenings in the equestrian world
“By consistently colluding with those individuals who are spying on Mr Milton and, for whatever reason, deciding to bring cases which have always looked unlikely to succeed the police and CPS are both failing in their obligations to Mr Milton and wasting large amounts of taxpayers money and court time.”
Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now
Sophia Heath joined Horse & Hound in July 2013 having previously worked for the Daily Telegraph's Olympics website, CNN International and Omnisport. A Durham graduate with a Masters in journalism from City University, Sophia has evented, showjumped and hunted. Sophia left Horse & Hound in early 2015 to join an international boating website.