[chrisseaton]

Pre-trial? It's from 1877 and listed in an industry reference on legal precedents. And that precedent still stands because, as the article says, they're still prosecuting people for it.

> One precedent-setting example from 1877 was the case of a diseased buried pig. According to legal text Archbold's Pleading, Evidence, and Practice in Criminal Cases, even if someone discards something and does not intend to use it again, they can retain ownership of it.

> this practice was part of the squat culture as well

Not sure this would work as a defence, to be honest.

[user5994461]

That BBC article is rather poorly related to the topic. A precedent needs to be a court document.

The first case. The owner of a sick pig buried on his land, then another person dig it and sold the carcass, in the 19th century. It's hard to tell if he was prosecuted for digging the land, or selling a diseased carcass, or theft.

The tesco case is equally poor. It doesn't say what is the result of the trial. Most likely because there wasn't one or it didn't go the way the article wished.