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Aristocrat is cleared of Extinction Rebellion charges because she is hard of hearing

Lady Dido Berkeley was cleared of the charges when she appeared in court
Lady Dido Berkeley was cleared of the charges when she appeared in court

A 77 year old aristocrat who lay in the road during an Extinction Rebellion protest was cleared of disobeying police instructions because she is hard of hearing.

Grandmother, Lady Dido Berkeley, suffers from auditory-dyslexia, a condition that makes it hard for her to pick out sounds from background noise, and said insisted she could not hear police reading the charge to her.

She had lain down in the road outside Parliament during the Extinction Rebellion Easter uprising.

The veteran campaigner said she felt it was "the only option left for her" after writing to the government about climate change and they did nothing.

She told City Of London Magistrates’ court she knew she should not be lying on the road during the protests on April 17 last year and told police "no comment" when they asked her to move to Marble Arch to continue her protest.

But the environmentalist was arrested for failure to comply with a public assembly order from a senior police officer.

Lady Berkeley said she had accepted the likelihood that she would be arrested for lying down in the road, but was actually charged with a different offence.

However she was cleared because it was accepted her auditory-dyslexia meant she had been unable to hear the officer state the Act under which she would be arrested.

The protests saw hundreds arrested
The protests saw hundreds arrested

Lady Berkeley appeared in court with her son, Tom Gueterbock, who works for GreenPeace and was also at the protest.

Mr Gueterbock told the court: "She has worked campaigning for the environment for a long time and it was very distressing to think she felt this was the only option left for her to take.

"She felt it was the only option given the climate we are in."

Lady Berekley was charged under section 14 of the Public Order Act which deems "a person who takes part in a public assembly" who "knowingly fails to comply with a condition imposed under this section" to be guilty of an offence.

But she told the court she did not hear the arresting officer when he stated section 14 to her on two separate occasions, according to the officer's report and witness account in court.

Lady Berkeley said: "It was just a blur. It was too much to take in, I just gave up. It was just like hearing another language.

"He was talking quite quietly. He said so much, it just went over my head. It did not register with my brain."

Prosecutor Charles Shelton said Lady Berkeley "knew full well what she was doing" and admitted she knew there was a risk of arrest before lying down in the road.

But Charles Streeton, defending, said she could not knowingly fail to comply with the condition because she could not hear what the arresting officer was saying.

He said: "She has freely and honestly admitted she should not be in the road but she has not been charged for that offence.

"It is critical that the person failing to comply is aware of the condition. To breach a condition under section 14 you need to be aware of the existence of the condition."

Lead magistrate Marina Lobanov-Rostovsky said: "We find that the order was lawfully given and was a proportionate response for the condition at that time.

"We are not satisfied beyond reasonable doubt today that she heard this order. We therefore find her not guilty."

Speaking after the trial, Lady Berkeley said: "It is a big step to win in order for the greater good and to protect the planet."