KEY POINTS:
A man who staged a noisy protest outside the Tauranga home of Parliament's Speaker, Margaret Wilson, has escaped a conviction.
Jim Bailey, founder of the HandsOnEqualParent Trust, appeared in Tauranga District Court yesterday charged with disorderly conduct.
After a two-hour defended hearing, during which Mr Bailey argued he
was staging a legitimate public protest by driving a van with a loudspeaker around the city's streets, police withdrew the charge.
It was brought after the 58-year-old drove the van through residential areas on a Sunday morning in May, parking it outside Ms Wilson's home and those of several family lawyers, protesting against the Government and Family Court with the loudspeaker.
A man with a hearing disability who complained to police said the protest created a "very loud racket".
After yesterday's hearing, Mr Bailey told the Herald the fact he had escaped conviction had spurred him to continue the protests.
"We have noted that the bothering technique is very effective, that it's causing those who damage our families into personal challenge," he said.
Mr Bailey said the Family Court separated children from their parents when it should award joint custody.
He pointed to the example of kidnapped Hamilton boy Jayden Headley, saying the court had let the boy down the first time his case was heard by putting him in the custody of only one parent.
Mr Bailey, an Aucklander, has been an ardent critic of the Family Court for more than 10 years, and has been involved in protests outside the homes of family lawyers and judges in other cities.
He continued the demonstrations yesterday, leading a small group of protesters with a loudspeaker and placards denouncing the Family Court outside the courthouse.
It was his first court appearance and he said beforehand that he was "a bit nervous" and took "no pleasure whatsoever" in the vocal protests, but they were necessary because there were "not enough people listening".
Men's groups, including the HandsOnEqualParent Trust, have waged a joint campaign of targeting judges' and family lawyers' homes for almost a year.
Those affected have complained the protests are intimidating.
Mr Bailey last year responded to the criticism by saying he was pleased the protests were intimidating.
"I think it's good," he said. "That's the whole idea. They've destroyed so many families and intimidated us."
Union of Fathers is another group that has been associated with the pickets, but a member, Allan Harvey, approached the Herald yesterday and said the organisation did not support Bailey.
