A jury took just 51 minutes to unanimously declare five Animal Rising campaigners who ran onto the tracks of the 2023 Grand National not guilty of public nuisance at Liverpool Crown Court today (13/11/25). This was the third of a series of five Grand National trials; after this third consecutive failure to convict, the CPS will now review whether the remaining trials will go to court with the next one currently due to start on 1/12/25.
Not Guilty: Robert Gordon, Daniel Kidby, Michelle Farnham, Edward Allnutt, Alistair Stewart
Not Guilty: Robert Gordon, Daniel Kidby, Michelle Farnham, Edward Allnutt, Alistair Stewart
118 people were arrested at Aintree in 2023 for attempting to access the racetrack and halt the Grand National race, opposing the frequent deaths of horses on the tracks and the use of horses as entertainment. [1]
The five defendants in this nine-day trial managed to occupy the track, with several affixing themselves to jumps on the course.
The Grand National race was delayed by 15 minutes, and horse Hill Sixteen died after falling at the first fence.
Subsequently, the British Horseracing Authority brought in additional safety measures for horses running the Grand National race from 2024 onwards; these changes are welcomed by Animal Rising, but the group says these changes do not go far enough. [2]
Two previous trials for other campaigners who attempted to access the track that day ended in a not guilty verdict (24/09/25) and a hung jury (21/10/25). [3]
Over 480 horses have been killed at racecourses in the UK since the 2023 Grand National protest [4].
Hundreds of campaigners joined Animal Rising’s effort to halt the 2023 Grand National, aiming to protect horses from harm and death whilst sparking a public debate about the exploitation of animals in sport. With two acquittals and a hung jury, Animal Rising contends that these trials reflect a broader shift in public opinion against horse racing. The group views them as significant victories for all activists operating within an increasingly hostile climate for peaceful protest in the UK.
A key defence of the campaigners was “reasonable excuse”, a provision of public nuisance law. Defendants argued the suffering and deaths of horses within the racing industry constituted a valid reason to attempt to stop the race and draw attention to the plight of horses in UK racing.
Michelle Farnham, 27, from London, was one of the five found not guilty today and said:
“Horses are dying on British racecourses at an average rate of one every other day. This cruelty isn’t entertainment, it’s exploitation, plain and simple.
Today’s verdict is the third time in a row that juries have refused to criminalise people for trying to stop horses dying at the Grand National. When the public hears the truth about the brutality of racing, they clearly don’t want to punish those who try to save lives.
This is why trial by jury matters: it gives ordinary people the power to say what is morally right. The writing is on the wall for the racing industry. It’s time horse racing was consigned to the past where it belongs, and this needless suffering is finally brought to an end.”
According to a University of York study, over half of those under 40 would not consider attending horse races due to welfare issues. The same study stated that attendance declined by over 500,000 from 2015 to 2019. [5] A survey released earlier this year by World Horse Welfare found that only 5% of people in the UK believe that ‘all sport horses live good lives’ and only 11% support the use of spurs.
