On Tuesday, the Toulouse Court of Appeal sentenced 21 volunteer mowers who had caused damage to hundreds of cans of Glyphosate in Ariege garden centers. This was after a first-degree acquittal.
Three of them represented the 21 environmental activists at the bar. Each received a suspended 300 euro fine for "degradation or deterioration" of another person's property during a meeting.
Contrary to Foix's decision a year back, the Toulouse court of appeal rejected "the state or necessity". This concept allows a person to be exonerated from criminal responsibility to avoid greater damages.
Dominique Masset, one defendant, stated that "Recognition is of the necessity is essential for [us], essential in the current course if we are to fight global warming and defend the environment." The 70-year-old mower said that although we have not yet reached a collective decision, some of us feel the cassation is necessary.
Sandrine Muscat (47), is next to him and is "tired, disappointed, and I get the feeling that justice isn't doing its job for society." "300 euros is symbolic for me. Even with a suspended sentence. The environmental activist says that symbolic is the fact that the law isn't being changed to eliminate pesticides.
A group of people painted pesticide containers containing Glyphosate with paint in Ariege's three garden centers. This rendered them unfit to be sold in September 2016 and March 2017.
These actions were part a national campaign against "the year of renewing the authorization ofglyphosate". Dominique Masset, the head of Dominique Masset, defended himself in March.
Guillaume Tumerelle, the lawyer for the mowers, stated that he didn't understand why they were being prosecuted.
