In early February the Crown Prosecution Service dropped all charges against a street preacher who was arrested and charged for comments he made about Islam and ISIS.
Michael Jones, 66, of Hornsea, was arrested in December 2015 and charged with two allegations of religious harassment under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998.
Recording disproves accusation
Mr Jones was accused of shouting: ‘All Muslims are terrorists, they should not be allowed in this country’. But a recording of Mr Jones’s preaching revealed that this and several other phrases, reported by a passerby and a woman on her lunch break, were fabricated. However, despite clear audio recorded evidence of his innocence of any crime, he was still held for hours in a cell and charged after police arrived unannounced at the Jones’s front door at 8.15am on 2 December and, without providing any identification, a policewoman barged into the family home.
The CPS has since decided to drop the case. The CPS letter stated: ‘The decision to discontinue these charges has been taken because there is not enough evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction.’
Advice to street preachers
Christian organisations advise street preachers to record all their conversations and preaching while on the streets.
