Climate activist Greta Thunberg cleared of public order offense during London oil protest

LONDON — Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg on Friday was cleared of a public order offense over a protest at an oil and gas conference in October.

Thunberg was arrested Oct. 17 outside the InterContinental London Park Lane hotel after joining hundreds of protesters at an "Oily Money Out" demonstration organized by Fossil Free London and Greenpeace.

Oil executives had been meeting inside the hotel on the first day of the Energy Intelligence Forum, formerly known as the Oil and Money conference.

Thunberg appeared at London's Westminster Magistrates' Court this week alongside two Fossil Free London protesters and two Greenpeace protesters. All five defendants pleaded not guilty after being accused of breaching Section 14 of the Public Order Act 1986 by failing to move their protest to a designated area.

The judge in the London court ruled she had no case to answer, and also acquitted the other defendants. "The prosecution evidence is insufficient for any reasonable court to properly convict and I exercise my discretion to acquit all five defendants," Judge John Law said to applause in the gallery, according to Reuters.