A former Paralympic cyclist who superglued himself to the roof of a British Airways plane has been given a 12-month prison sentence.
James Brown, 56, who has been registered blind since birth, carried out the stunt at London City Airport in 2019.
At approximately 1pm on October 10, 2019, the double gold medallist climbed onto an Amsterdam-bound plane before gluing his right hand to the aircraft and wedging his mobile phone in the door to prevent it from closing.
A team of specially trained protest removal officers had to be called, who along with the London Fire Brigade used a de-icer machine to remove Brown’s hand and bring him down from the plane.
The Northern Ireland-born athlete – who represented Great Britain in cycling and athletics before going on to represent Ireland in cross-country skiing – live-streamed the protest until he was removed after an hour.
Due to Brown’s actions and the potential damage to the aircraft, the plane had to be taken out of service and inspected by an engineer.
A total of 337 passengers had their flights canceled, missing birthday celebrations, important business meetings and family events, with the disruption costing the airline around £40,000.
Appearing at Southwark Crown Court on September 24, Brown, who represented himself at his trial, denied one count of causing a public nuisance, claiming he had ‘to do something spectacular’ to draw attention to the climate crisis.
But he was found guilty in July after a jury deliberated for less than an hour.
Judge Perrins sentenced him to 12 months’ imprisonment, of which he will serve half.
The judge told Brown: ‘It is important that those who are tempted to seriously disrupt the lives of ordinary members of the public in the way that you did and then seek to justify it in the name of protest understand that they will face serious consequences.
‘There is a clear dividing line between legitimate protest and deliberate offending, and you knowingly crossed it.’
There were cries of ‘shame on you’ among Brown’s supporters in the public gallery as he was taken down to the cells.
The judge said he accepted Brown was acting according to his conscience and was motivated ‘by a desire to bring about a change you genuinely believe is for the benefit of all.’
But he told Brown: ‘You are not entitled to more lenient treatment simply because you were protesting about environmental matters as opposed to some other cause.
‘Everyone in this country has the right to protest and there are many ways in which that can be done without breaking the law.’
Tim Maloney QC, defending Brown at his sentencing hearing, had urged the judge to impose a fine or a community order instead of a jail sentence.
He said Brown had ‘overcome the barriers to live a successful and inspiring life’ to compete at five Paralympic Games.
The married father-of-four also pursued a career as a maths teacher and worked for Gloucestershire County Council in disabled children’s services, Mr
Maloney said.Giving evidence at his trial, Brown, from Exeter wept as he told jurors: ‘I was prepared to challenge myself, to be scared, to face the fear, because the fear of climate ecological breakdown is so much greater.’
Raj Chada, from HJA solicitors, the firm representing Brown, said they were ‘shocked’ at the prison sentence and would be appealing.
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