[SUPPORTERS and members of the Liverpool 8 Defence…]
Socialist Organiser1981 1981-10-22Read it in the scan (PDF), scan page 13 →
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SUPPORTERS and members of the Liverpool 8 Defence Committee picketed the Crown Court last Thursday 15th, as the first riot case came up.
Hundreds of youth have been shut up in Risley Remand Centre for the last three months, and are now being processed through the Crown Court. Many of them have been the victims of trumped-up charges or have been beaten up by the police while in custody.
The picketers handed out a leaflet exposing the fraudulent nature of the system of justice which allows a reactionary press to keep up. a barrage of abuse and slander against the rioters while ignoring the attempts of the Defence Committee to set the record straight.
Contempt
15 minutes after the picketers had assembled, a police meat wagon' arrived, and the picketers were bundled into it - on charges of 'contempt of court'. '. After several hours in the cells below the Crown Court, they were dragged before the judge and confronted with the choice of a prison term or an apology.
The picketers were angry, but reluctantly agreed to have a QC deliver an apology on their behalf.
It would seem that three months of press coverage is not supposed to bias the jury, but a single leaflet interferes with the due process of justice!
On the picket were a number of white members of the TGWU 6/612 branch. Some black Defence Committee members said they felt