Solicitors shows briefs in search protest
By Times Online and PA
A solicitor could face disciplinary action after dropping his trousers inside a court corridor in protest against new security measures.
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Willie Johnstone stood with his suit trousers around his ankles and invited security staff to search him after being told to pass through the court’s electronic scanning system.
Mr Johnstone was one of a dozen defence solicitors protesting against new security measures at Sunderland Magistrates Court when he dropped his trousers in front of bemused security staff.
Under the regulations introduced last week, anyone entering the court through the main front door must be scanned and searched.
Defence solicitors claim the measures discriminate against them because they do not apply to prosecutors, magistrates or court staff, who can get into the building through a back door.
Mr Johnstone, who works for Harding, Swinburne, Jackson, a local law firm, is on holiday in Thailand and not answering his mobile phone but a colleague at his firm said the incident was being blown out of proportion.
A spokesman for Her Majesty’s Court Service, however, said they viewed the incident very seriously.
"We have a duty of care to all court users and any people entering the court building via the public entrance must be searched. The policy applies to everyone, including solicitors. We are taking this incident very seriously and we are considering what action to take," he said.
A spokesman for the Law Society said they had not received any formal complaints about Mr Johnstone’s behaviour.
