A Cumbrian man is set to face a trial after being accused of two acts of illegal hunting.
John Harrison, 48, who is the Huntsman of the Ullswater Foxhounds of Grassthwaite Howe, in Glenridding near Penrith, appeared at Eden Magistrates’ Court charged with two counts of hunting a wild mammal with a dog.
He pleaded not guilty to both offences, and will now go on trial before a district judge in Penrith over three days from September 16 to September 18.
The Hunting Act was brought in by the Government in 2004, and prohibits the hunting of mammals with dogs, unless the hunting is exempted.
Harrison was granted bail. Both his solicitor and a representative from the Crown Prosecution Service will appear before magistrates in Carlisle on August 17 for a review of the case ahead of the trial.