A Canterbury farmer charged with threatening to kill the Prime Minister has told a jury he was acting for the greater public good.
Mark Feary, 53, of Oxford has pleaded not guilty to 12 charges of sending messages to politicians and government officials threatening to cause grievous bodily harm, and two charges of threatening to kill Prime Minister John Key.
Mr Feary told the Christchurch District Court on Thursday he wanted to get his long-running legal dispute with the Commissioner of Crown Lands before a jury.
He says his actions were in the public interest, to draw attention to the Government's corrupt nature.
Judge Raoul Neave told Mr Feary the court was not there to rule on the legitimacy of his grievance with the Government.
