21st March 2025
THE future of trail hunting in England ‘could be at risk’ if three hunt owners are successfully prosecuted over animal welfare, a court has heard.
David Woolley, 67, of Hatton Lane in Chester and Peter Jones, 66, of Birds Lane in Bunbury both pleaded not guilty to one count of failing in the duty of a person responsible for animals to ensure welfare.
A third man – John Simpson, 61, of Huxley Lane in Huxley – pleaded not guilty in absence through his solicitor Stephen Welford, who is defending all three men.
The charge relates to an incident on November 9 last year where the men, as directors of the Cheshire Hunt, are being prosecuted for allowing their pack of dogs to wander unaccompanied in the road in Tarporley.
Mr Welford, defending the trio, told Chester Magistrates Court on Friday, March 21, that the case is ‘national importance’ as it is the first type of prosecution.
The court heard that that the dogs had been hunting trails that day but ended up on the road without a mounted person with them.
He added that ‘it could have caused injury, according to the police’, and he suggests that if it is a successful prosecution then it could mean ‘hunts across the country cannot continue’.
He said that ‘hounds do get away’ and reiterated that ‘it could be of national importance’ before asking for a trial to be heard in front of a District Judge.
The three men will undergo a two-day trial at South Cheshire Magistrates Court in Crewe on September 8.
But there will be a case management hearing at Chester Magistrates Court on May 12 in front of District Judge John McGarva.