HUNT APPEAL

The first huntsman found guilty of breaching the Hunting Act 2004 has won his appeal against conviction. Judge Graham Cottle, sitting at Exeter Crown Court, said Tony Wright, of the Exmoor Foxhounds, had satisfactorily proved that he reasonably believed he had put in place safeguards that would ensure compliance with the Act. Wright was appealing against his conviction at Barnstaple Magistrates’ Court last year for hunting a wild animal with dogs. He denied the charge but was fined £500 and ordered to pay £250 costs under a private prosecution brought by the League Against Cruel Sports.