HAVRES-AUX-MAISONS, Que. - Five animal-rights activists charged with getting too close to seal hunters during the 2006 hunt off Canada's east coast were found not guilty Friday.
The five were charged with coming within 10 metres of seal hunters on March 26, 2006 while filming the annual slaughter in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, not far from Cape Breton.
"It is extremely difficult on the seas ... to figure out the distance (between boats)," Quebec Judge Jean-Paul Decoste said in handing down the decision.
There are "few or no reference points on which to rely," he said.
The five, representatives of Humane Society International and Humane Society of the United States, were charged with violating terms of an observer permits under the Marine Mammal Regulations. The offence carries a maximum fine of $100,000.
The defendants -- Canadians Rebecca Aldworth and Andrew Plumbly; Americans Chad Sisneros and Pierre Grzybowski; and British citizen Mark Glover -- all pleaded not guilty.
"This case is all about keeping the images of (hunters) brutally killing baby seals off television. It has no other purpose," said lawyer Clayton Ruby, who represented the five.
"It is not a legitimate prosecution in any sense."
The trial was held on Iles de la Madeleine and Decoste's decision was broadcast in Toronto via teleconference, where Ruby and Aldworth attended.
Earlier, federal prosecutors dropped a charge of obstructing the hunt.
The 2006 hunt was marked by high-profile protests by pop music superstar Paul McCartney and retired French actress Brigitte Bardot.
On the ice floes, there were frequent clashes between sealers and protesters opposed to the hunt, which the federal government insists is a humane enterprise that brings much-needed cash to families that supplement their meagre incomes during the winter.
Animal welfare activists say the annual commercial hunt is cruel and provides little economic benefit once government costs associated with policing and supporting the hunt are factored in.
