Pro-Israel campaigner acquitted of smashing watch

A pro-Israel campaigner accused of smashing a pro-Palestinian demonstrator’s watch walked free from court today after a judge ruled there was no case to answer.

Martin Gillard, 77, allegedly grabbed Sheila Hall’s wrist and yanked her tote bag down her arm, dislodging her smart watch from its strap so it fell to the floor and smashed.

Gillard, a former teacher, today stood trial for criminal damage on the basis of recklessness at Brighton Magistrates Court.

He denied grabbing Ms Hall, a former Labour councillor, at the protest at the Clock Tower in June last year.

But the question of whether or not he had grabbed Ms Hall did not need to be decided, as district judge Amanda Kelly ruled the crown had failed to demonstrate he would know doing that risked damaging the watch.

Ms Kelly said: “The difficulty in this case is that Martin Gillard has been charged with criminal damage, not with any sort of physical assault.

“Where someone is charged with criminal damage, the prosecution has to prove that the defendant either intended to damage the watch or was reckless as to whether the watch was damaged.

“In this case, I believe the case is put on a reckless basis but I would have to be made sure by the prosecution evidence that Martin Gillard specifically foresaw the risk that he would damage Sheila Hall’s watch.

“Sheila Hall said that watch had never flown off before. It took a real struggle to dislodge it. It’s not a watchface that generally flies out of its strapping.

“If she couldn’t accept her watchface falling out of its strap, how can the prosecution come close to proving that Mr Gillard foresaw the watch falling out of its strap?

“I’m not persuaded that there’s any evidence to that effect whatsoever.

“Ms Hall said he grabbed her over the forearm – that’s why I clarified that with her. It could be assault, but he’s not charged with assault. I don’t know why – maybe the police were out of time.”

She turned to Gillard and said: “There’s no case to answer. You are not guilty. Thank you very much, you are free to go.”

Giving evidence earlier in the trial, Ms Hall said Gillard had attacked her after she had ripped up a poster he was holding.

She said: “He was waving the poster in front of my face and trying to antagonise.

“I pulled it, tore it and threw it on the ground and he instantly assaulted me.

“He was the clear instigator by way of waving it in my face.”

The court was shown the bag she had been carrying – a Keffiyeh patterned black tote bag – and how her smartwatch came out of its rubber strap.

It was also shown a brief video clip, supplied by Gillard, of Ms Hall standing next to him with a ripped poster in front of them on the floor, and showing the watchface missing from the strap on her wrist.

Gillard, of Rottindean Place, could be seen holding an Israeli flag and walking away from Ms Hall.

Cross examining on his behalf, solicitor Ms Mear asked her how he could have grabbed her with both hands as she had described if he was holding the flag.

Ms Hall said he must have taken the flag after the incident.

The court was told during two subsequent police interviews, Gillard said he had not grabbed her. He also said Ms Hall had ripped up another pro-Israel protester’s poster during another demonstration at the Clock Tower.

Speaking after the trial, Gillard said: “I’m very pleased that they came to that conclusion and I regret that I wasn’t able to cross examine the witnesses myself. I think they should have had to answer for their bad evidence.

“I was very confident my witnesses were going to be very truthful and the court would have come to the true verdict.”