On 6th Feb 2026, Sam Jones, huntsman for the Cottesmore Hunt, was found not guilty of hunting a wild mammal with dogs. This is despite clear video footage showing hounds in Mr Jones’ control chasing a fox.
Would banning trail hunting have prevented the fox’s suffering? Maybe.
BUT – would banning fox hunting properly have prevented it? Far, far more likely.
This report is now the final, and most recent, part of “Broken Law, How the Hunting Act Has Failed”
Everyone’s knows that trail hunting is a smokescreen for fox hunting.
Close the loopholes!
Seriously when the law recognise criminal behaviour of hunts.
You are not blind you choose to ignore evidence.
That in my eyes make you explicit in criminal behaviour and also should face charges
The Law IS the Ass.
Those that twist and turn – know it.
Whatever 🤷♀️ it needs to change – the fox deserves better than the law is giving it.
😢
Absolutely diabolical! one wonders if the magistrates were pro hunting! Of course no trail maps were available because Sam Jones had no intentions of trail hunting and interesting that he claims they were created back in 2025! As for Bee Bell’s statements they are vague and woolly to say the least – utter tosh! Trails laid near fox coverts to simulate fox hunting can only mean one thing. Shame on you Sam Jones and your cronies – amazing how money talks isn’t it. George Chapman’s saying ‘The law is an ass” is quite appropriate on this occasion.
Get the fucking ban in place once and for all!!! Sam jones is running riot all
Over the countryside and getting away with it!!! How are people turning a blind eye to it
You have to seriously question what the police, the CPS and the magistrates are thinking when a crime so blatantly committed as this is allowed to go unpunished. How deep the authorities are mixed up with the Fox Hunting fraternity needs to be properly looked into.
Very sad. Apparently it only failed because of the law, not the magistrates, who wanted to convict. It’s about time Labour pulled their finger out, fulfilled their manifesto promise to the 9.3 million or so of us who live in rural areas of the UK, and stopped letting us down by delaying action.
This horrid cruel activity needs to end now, not only as a community satey issue with hounds and horses allover the roads and into folks land and gardens, it is a relic of the past with not place in the future and is so so cruel to all animals involved esp the foxes