Sussex pro-Palestine protester to face retrial over factory action

A pro-Palestine protester from Sussex, Bea Sherman—also known as Frank Sherman—will face a retrial next year after a jury could not reach a verdict last month. Sherman, 23, from Ditchling in East Sussex, is one of four activists scheduled for a retrial over alleged criminal damage at an aerospace factory in Wolverhampton. The Crown alleges that Sherman and co-defendants Iain Evans, Hisham Alkhamesi, and Hana Yun-Stevens used power tools to cut sections of roofing and smashed hundreds of solar panels at Moog Wolverhampton Ltd in August last year. Prosecutors say the group acted without lawful excuse, while all four deny wrongdoing and have pleaded not guilty to causing criminal damage. The retrial is expected to begin on March 8, or shortly after, at Birmingham Crown Court, and is forecast to last about five days, with the final venue still to be confirmed.