Beatty v Gillbanks
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Date | 1882 |
| Year | 1882 |
| Court | Divisional Court |
Unlawful Assembly - Meeting for lawful Purpose - Knowledge that others will commit a Breach of the Peace.
The appellants assembled with others for a lawful purpose, and with no intention of carrying it out unlawfully, but with the knowledge that their assembly would be opposed, and with good reason to suppose that a breach of the peace would be committed by those who opposed it:—
Held, by Field and Cave, JJ., that they could not be rightly convicted of unlawful assembly.
AT a petty sessions held at Weston-super-Mare, the appellants were charged for that they did unlawfully and tumultuously assemble with divers other persons to the number of one hundred or more in public thoroughfares called Walliscote Road and other places within the said parish on the 26th day of March, to the disturbance of the public peace, and against the peace of our sovereign Lady the Queen. Upon the hearing of such complaint the justices found that the allegations therein contained had been proved, and ordered the appellants to be severally bound in their own recognizances, with two sureties, to keep the peace and be of good behaviour for the term of twelve calendar months, and in default to be imprisoned for three calendar months, or until they should comply with such order. The appellants being dissatisfied with such determination the justices stated the following case:—
At the hearing of the complaint the following facts were proved:—
(a.) The Salvation Army is an organized body of persons who are and have for some time been in the habit of forming, themselves into processions of more than one hundred persons, and in such processions of parading the principal streets and public places of the town of Weston-super-Mare.
(b.) These processions are formed at the hall of the Salvation Army, and after their formation proceed, headed by a musical band and flags and banners, through the aforesaid streets and places, collecting, and for the purpose of collecting as they go, a mob of persons with whom, attended by much shouting, singing, uproar, and noise, they eventually return to the said hall, where a meeting is then held.
(c.) The appellant, William Beatty, is captain and a leader of the Salvation Army, and organizes and directs these processions and meetings.
(d.) The appellants, William Henry Mullins and Thomas Bowden, are also leaders of the Salvation Army, and assist in organizing and directing the processions.
(e.) There is another organized band of persons at Weston-super-Mare called the Skeleton Army, who also parade the streets, and are antagonistic to the Salvation Army and its processions.
(f.) There are numbers of other persons of Weston-super-Mare who, so soon as the Salvation Army has formed for the purpose of so parading the streets as aforesaid, are in the habit of assembling in a mob of great numbers about, and around, and in front of, the Salvation Army. Some of these, together with the Skeleton Army, assemble to dispute the passage of the Salvation Army through the streets and places, some to encourage such passage with shouting, uproar, and noise, to the great terror, disturbance, annoyance, and inconvenience of the peaceable inhabitants of the town, and to the endangering of the public peace.
(g.) On several occasions previous to the 23rd of March in this year, the procession of the Salvation Army, accompanied by such a mob as aforesaid, has come into collision with the Skeleton Army and other persons who are antagonistic to the Salvation Army, and thereupon a free fight, great uproar, blows, tumult, stone throwing, and disorder has ensued.
(h.) On the 23rd of March the Salvation Army formed their procession, and paraded the...
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Austin v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis
...ambit of what it is reasonable for the police to do in the face of an imminent breach of the peace, can be found in Beatty v Gillbanks (1882) 9 QBD 308, which Lord Rodger cited in these terms at [80], without referring to the case by name: “What does need to be stressed, however, is that, a......
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R v Chief Constable of Sussex, ex parte International Trader's Ferry Ltd (pet. all.)
...principle that lawful activities cannot become unlawful because other people threaten unlawful acts to stop them: Beatty v. Gillbanks (1882) 9 Q.B.D. 308. 94There is a dispute of fact over whether the Chief Constable did give orders in such broad terms but I think that even if he did, it ca......
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Hubbard v Pitt
...and in good orderwithout threats or incitement to violence or obstruction to traffic, it is not prohibited — see Bcatty v. Gillbanks (1882) 9 Q.B.D. 308. I stress the need for peace and good order. Only too often violence may break out: and then it should be firmly handled and severely puni......
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R (Laporte) v Chief Constable of Gloucestershire Constabulary
...make them difficult to fit into any of these categories, if such classification were required. One might point to Beatty v Gillbanks (1882) 9 QBD 308, in which the Salvation Army, then in very militant mode, organised a procession, with a band, flags and banners, being well aware that they ......
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Recent Judicial Decisions
...where the threat was coming from,because it was there that the preventive action must be directed. Thecourt referred to Beattyv.Gilbanks (1882) 9 QBD 308, Wisev.Dunning[1902] 1 KB 167, Duncanv.Jones [1936] 1 KB 218, Nicolv.DPP(1995) The Times, November 22 and [1996] Crim. LR 318, R.v.Morpet......