Women convicted after smearing jam on bust of Queen Victoria
- Published
Two protesters who smeared jam and porridge over a bust of Queen Victoria have been convicted of malicious mischief.
Sarah Martin, 30, and Hannah Taylor, 24, carried out what they described as a demonstration against rising food insecurity at Glasgow's Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in March.
The pair, activists for campaign group This is Rigged, also spray-painted an offensive word on the plinth of the statue.
An area of the museum was shut for several hours as a result. The charity Glasgow Life, which runs the museum, had to pay about £600 to repair the statue and its plinth.
Martin and Taylor were found guilty of a charge of malicious mischief following a trial at Glasgow Sheriff Court.
The pair, who represented themselves, were found not guilty to a separate charge of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner.
In a video of the protest played to the trial, Martin is heard to say: "We refuse to be dragged back to the Victorian era."
'Forced into action'
Museum gallery assistant Michael Barr told the court the bust had been a permanent fixture at the museum for more than 30 years.
He said of the protest: "They shouldn't be doing it, this belongs to the city and they could have damaged it."
Martin told the court in her closing submission: "Mr Barr states that the bust belongs to Glasgow, I am a citizen of Glasgow and I am interacting with it as necessary.
"I was forced into taking action and I took no reckless or thoughtless action - I sought to express my rights to protest."
Sentence was deferred pending background reports until next month. Both women had their bail continued in the meantime.
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