<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A former Greens candidate who ran against the prime minister will fight charges over an allegedly unauthorised protest during which she suffered a serious eye injury while being arrested.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Hannah Thomas, 35, was charged with hindering or resisting police and two counts of refusing to comply with a move-on direction in a protest at SEC Plating in Sydney's south-west on June 27.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Her lawyer, Stewart O'Connell, entered pleas of not guilty to the charges during a brief hearing at Bankstown Local Court today.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/reserve-bank-of-australia-wants-to-remove-card-surcharges/6e7688de-6866-4470-b716-d886c0cc229a" rel="" target="_blank" title=""><strong><span>Australians could save $1.2b a year under proposed new reform</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Thomas did not appear in court.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The NSW Director of Public Prosecutions had taken over Thomas' matter from police, DPP solicitor Chris Allison confirmed during the hearing.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Thomas, an activist and lawyer, was among five people arrested during the protest.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/sydney-courts-former-greens-candidate-hannah-thomas-injured-in-protest-to-fight-charges/4dd9c61a-9f4b-4afb-9fbc-40bd5c033bca" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>They were rallying outside an Australian firm reportedly linked to the manufacture of components for US fighter jets used by the Israeli Defence Forces.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The arrests are subject to an internal NSW Police review, with external oversight by the police watchdog, after Thomas suffered an eye injury requiring surgery.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The other four protesters - Zachary Schofield, 26, Shane Reside, 41, Brandon Eid, 24, and Holly Zhang, 29 - all pleaded not guilty today to various charges relating to the protest and their arrests.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/nasa-release-closest-ever-look-at-the-sun-after-probe/6fa84f60-a0fa-4ca7-8603-ec8f2c0d70db" rel="" target="_blank" title=""><strong><span>Closest ever photos of the sun reveal 'space weather threat' origins</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Zhang and Schofield have both been accused of refusing or failing to comply with a police direction, while Schofield faces a further charge of hindering or resisting police.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Eid has been charged with larceny and goods in custody suspected to be stolen, while Reside was hit with a single count of using offensive language in a public place.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Police prosecutors will run all of the matters, however, the DPP can elect to take over Eid's case, which contains a more serious allegation of larceny.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Another of Thomas' lawyers, Peter O'Brien, said yesterday she might permanently lose vision in her injured eye.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>He has reviewed footage of the arrest and alleged a male officer "punched" Thomas in the face.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The charge of resisting police could never be sustained as the police officers were plainly acting outside of the execution of their duties ... with brutal and life-changing consequences," O'Brien said in a statement.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Police had misunderstood the law and unlawfully applied move-on directions, he claimed.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/rescued-german-backpacker-carolina-wilga-reveals-she-dropped-12kg-while-lost-in-the-wa-outback/5c7f14f8-ac73-435e-ad20-32f5a98cd11b" rel="" target="_blank" title=""><strong><span>Rescued backpacker lost 12kg while lost in the WA outback</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>O'Brien has also flagged a civil suit on Thomas' behalf against the state over a number of allegations, including assault and battery, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, misfeasance in public office, and collateral abuse of process.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Brett McFadden has previously said he did not observe any misconduct in the body-worn camera footage of the incident. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The officers involved remain on duty.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Protesters returned to SEC Plating on Friday evening for another rally, where a statement from Thomas was read out.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We owe it to Palestinians to escalate, to keep targeting companies like SEC Plating, which play a role in the F-35 global supply chain and enable genocide against the Palestinian people," she said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Thomas ran second to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in the inner-west Sydney seat of Grayndler at the May federal election.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/how-to-follow-9news-digital/29855bb1-ad3d-4c38-bc25-3cb52af1216f" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP</span></em></strong></a><strong><em><span>: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. 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