){kind=small}
A case brought against Greta Thunberg and four other protesters was dismissed by Judge Laws on Friday 2nd February. Whilst the case has garnered media attention due to the involvement of Greta, the outcome of the case is important from a legal perspective. The five protesters were arrested in October of last year at a protest outside the InterContinental hotel in Mayfair which was hosting the Energy Intelligence Forum (EIF) – an event attended by executives from fossil fuel companies and government ministers. They were arrested for breaching a condition imposed under s.14 of the Public Order Act 1986 (POA 86). As far as arrests at climate protests go, this is the bread and butter of public order policing; therefore, one might assume that the police were well versed in the use of these powers. For example, during Just Stop Oil’s slow march campaign in London last summer, the Metropolitan police made 271 arrests, mostly for breaches of conditions.