Gyrocopter pilot cleared of manslaughter over hunt member's death

The animal rights activist Bryan Griffiths was today cleared of the manslaughter of Warwickshire hunt member Trevor Morse, who was killed when he was struck by the blade of a gyrocopter. The two-week trial at Birmingham crown court heard Morse's head was cleaved "from top to bottom" by the blade of Griffiths's gyrocopter as he tried to stop it from taking off at Long Marston airfield on 9 March last year. Griffiths, of Bedworth, north Warwickshire, had been monitoring the hunt from the air and had stopped at the airfield, near Stratford-upon-Avon, to refuel. The 55-year-old had denied Morse's manslaughter by gross negligence and was found not guilty today by jurors after deliberations of seven and a half hours. Morse, 48, had refused to move out of the way as Griffiths went towards him, and the rear propeller of the aircraft, moving at a speed approaching 200mph, struck him, killing him instantly, the court heard. The incident was caught on camera by the man who had brought fuel to the airfield, Peter Bunce, and jurors have watched the footage a number of times during the trial. Griffiths showed no reaction as the verdict was delivered today but there were gasps and some applause from supporters in the public gallery.