Chaynee Hodgetts achieves a 12-month suspended sentence for JSO protester Nicholas Onley in a high-profile M25 protest case at Aylesbury Crown Court.
Chaynee Hodgetts, instructed by Mr Simon Natas of ITN Solicitors, secures a suspended sentence for a Just Stop Oil (JSO) M25 protester before HHJ Francis Sheridan DL.
Climate protester Mr Nicholas Onley was charged with public nuisance, following the JSO M25 protests in November 2022, which involved protesters climbing the gantries of the M25 motorway. He was sentenced at Aylesbury Crown Court.
This protest occurred as part of the JSO “M25 blockade” week in November 2022 – a week which also gave rise to the case of R v Hallam (Roger), for a different M25 protest that same week, in which protesters (including the JSO co-founder and the “Whole Truth Five”) received sentences of up to 5 years immediate custody at Southwark Crown Court.
After considering Ms Hodgetts’ representations in mitigation, HHJ Sheridan sentenced Mr Onley to a 12 month Suspended Sentence Order (SSO), suspended for 24 months, adding, in sentencing remarks: “Ms Hodgetts’ conduct in this case shows the Criminal Bar is still alive, even though it is broken.”
HHJ Sheridan emphasised that Mr Onley’s sentence was based upon his unique and exceptional circumstances in mitigation, and did not bind any other sentences in protest cases generally.
