The hearing was short, with the supporters watching from the gallery. Supporters had travelled from Norwich and Cambridge for the hearing.

The case will enter new legal territory as one of the first cases where the Criminal Trespass law has been used. The new legislation now makes it a criminal offence to trespass on designated MoD sites such as Lakenheath. Any person found guilty of criminal trespass can be fined up to £5000, be jailed for up to 51 weeks in England and Wales, (or up to 12 months in Scotland) or both. Others have been charged with this offence, but it has yet to be tested in court.

Last October, the activists entered USAF Lakenheath nuclear base and chained themselves to the gates of a "Special Technical Munition Area" to stop the movement of cluster bombs - "land mines that fall from the sky" in the words of one of the defendants. The activists were locked on for nearly three hours before being cut off.

Ministry of Defence police were called to report the Weapons of Mass Destruction, giving the UK police an opportunity to enter the RAF base. The base is effectively a USAF base, with one British officer on the base, so MoD police do not normally enter the base. As far the defendants know, the police have still not investigated the cluster bombs.

Lakenheath also stores nuclear bombs, and is used for bombing raids. Iraqi missions have been flown from there and flight plans indicate the recent bombing of Somalia may have been from Lakenheath.

Report of the action
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/cambridge/2006/10/352412.html

Information about the court dates
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/cambridge/2007/02/361312.html
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/cambridge/2007/02/361343.html

Background on Lakenheath
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2002/11/46793.html?c=on

Criminal Trespass briefing
 http://www.tridentploughshares.org/article1405